Zenith Z50PX2D [Text View] - Page 4

cet98

04-05-06, 02:34 PM

Well, I went to best buy today, and it has 1501 hours of use, which is over 2 months of 24 hrs a day continuous use, thats insane.

TV is $2299
Plan $ 299

I cant seem to get them to bargain with me at all, any ideas?

I also have a 20% off open box tv coupon I plan on using after I purchase it, like a return rebuy. I really really want to get them down to $2100 making the cost of the tv under $1700.

with all due respect...just do some math here...
half life on the unit is 60,000 hours...so you have 58,499 hours left...
at 8 hours of viewing a day (not that you will use it that much) you have approximately 20 years of viewing left....
and with your 20% coupon we're currently at $2138.20 + tax which INCLUDES the extended warranty....( a far cry from what most everyone else here has dished out)...
stop driving yourself crazy...
go get this 50" beauty and start enjoying the darn thing...!!!

JohninTonawanda

04-06-06, 11:15 AM

So the NEW question: Those who have seen the flashing.....were you using the internal OTA or Cable Card tuner RIGHT before seeing the flashing??? For me, that seems to be the "trigger".

Anyone ?!?!?!

:confused:

I thought I had noticed an occasional flash over the 4 months I've owned this TV however last night it happened so much as to be really annoying.
As JayPB noted, it occurred after I was watching something on the OTA tuner and then switched to a component input. The component input was flashing like crazy. I used my DVR to record the content and looked at it again this morning and the recording did not have flashes.

I am searching through this thread looking for someone who resolved this problem. Anyone?

jaypb

04-06-06, 02:17 PM

I thought I had noticed an occasional flash over the 4 months I've owned this TV however last night it happened so much as to be really annoying.
As JayPB noted, it occurred after I was watching something on the OTA tuner and then switched to a component input. The component input was flashing like crazy. I used my DVR to record the content and looked at it again this morning and the recording did not have flashes.

I am searching through this thread looking for someone who resolved this problem. Anyone?

For me, I stopped the flashing by.....not using the OTA tuner anymore! Bottom line is: Most of the viewing in my house recently has been time shifted, so I really haven't had a chance to sit down and *watch* anything live OTA....ergo no more flashing.

And, like you, I was unable to get my TIVO to "replicate" the flashing when I replayed what I had recorded.

Very odd..... :confused:

A7thson

04-07-06, 08:05 AM

And, like you, I was unable to get my TIVO to "replicate" the flashing when I replayed what I had recorded.

Not so odd really. If it's the tv thats flashing, and not the signal input, it occurs after the tivo. the only way to record it would be to take a line out of the monitor back into the tivo. Even then you would only get it if it appeared on the line and not simply on the screen itself.

jimbir

04-07-06, 02:42 PM

Try turning the tv off for minute or so.

JohninTonawanda

04-07-06, 02:52 PM

Not so odd really. If it's the tv thats flashing, and not the signal input, it occurs after the tivo. the only way to record it would be to take a line out of the monitor back into the tivo. Even then you would only get it if it appeared on the line and not simply on the screen itself.

Yes, both Jaypb and I cited the fact that the DVR playback does not display the flash as evidence that it was the TV, not the signal, that was flashing. Perhaps we didn't spell it out enough though.

I am wondering how common this problem is. Anyone else who has not experienced a flash want to try a simple experiment.
Watch 30 minutes of programming via the OTA (over the air) tuner then switch inputs to a cablebox over COMP1 and look for flashes. Shouldn't be too hard to recognize, for me, it is obvious to the point of annoying.

Jaypb, your solution is fine (not watching OTA) but my cable provider doesn't offer FOX in HD. My family enjoys some FOX HD programming (24, idol, house). One of the reasons I bought this set is because of the OTA tuner. Oh well. Still overall I am happy with the set.

JohninTonawanda

04-07-06, 02:55 PM

Try turning the tv off for minute or so.

Jimbir, you received a new TV because of the flashing, right? Does the new set flash at all? Did they actually replace the set or just replace the board responsible for the problem?

jaypb

04-07-06, 03:36 PM

Jaypb, your solution is fine (not watching OTA) but my cable provider doesn't offer FOX in HD. My family enjoys some FOX HD programming (24, idol, house). One of the reasons I bought this set is because of the OTA tuner. Oh well. Still overall I am happy with the set.

Sadly, it's the only solution I can come up with..... :rolleyes:

I never did get around to calling/firing off an e-mail to C/S.

I'm beyond happy with this TV overall based on what I paid and it's performance so far. Heck, once my TV in the bedroom goes (which may be rather sooner than later) I've got my eye on the 37" Zenith LCD with the built in OTA tuner.....flashing or no flashing.... :D

Eagles Dare

04-07-06, 05:03 PM

Never seen a flash, but I've never had OTA hooked up either. I cycle between all the inputs pretty regularly though.

It must be something in the ATSC tuner.

KSLABY

04-07-06, 08:53 PM

cet98

04-07-06, 09:14 PM

Help...
Forgive me as I'm new to this high tech world of HDTV but I just purchased this Z and got it mounted on the wall and it looks great! But when I watch a "widescreen" DVD it doesn't fill the screen. There is still the gray bars on the side and the black across the top. I know there will be the black on top (no big deal) but I thought when I put it in the 16:9 aspect ratio this should fill the screen sideways w/o stretching the picture sideways. If I use Zoom1 then it is ok (maybe a little cropping) but I lose some of the crispness of the picture. The DVD is a Toshiba SD2805 and I'm connecting them with a s-vid cable.

How do I get it to fit the width of the screen w/o zooming and/or distorting the pic or can I?

Kevin

Kevin...
Check your DVD player settings...your DVD player must be set-up to "play" a DVD in 16:9 format...most every player is defaulted at 4:3...if this player is a progressive scan player than take care to enable progressive scan as well to provide you with a somewhat better image...
good luck and congrats on the new Z... :cool:

KSLABY

04-07-06, 09:49 PM

Thanks for the info! I'll check into it but my guess is that it doesn't since it's a cheapie:)

KS

Cee9

04-07-06, 11:44 PM

The DVD is a Toshiba SD2805 and I'm connecting them with a s-vid cable.

To get the best picture possible from the Toshiba, use the Component Outputs (Y Pr Pb) instead of the S-Video.

KSLABY

04-08-06, 09:23 AM

Kevin...
Check your DVD player settings...your DVD player must be set-up to "play" a DVD in 16:9 format...most every player is defaulted at 4:3...if this player is a progressive scan player than take care to enable progressive scan as well to provide you with a somewhat better image...
good luck and congrats on the new Z... :cool:
GOT IT! I found the DVD instructions and got it set to 16:9 and it works like it should! Now I don't need to get a new DVD player.. Bummer:)

Thnx Cee9, I will experiment with the differ cabling and see if I notice anything.

Thank You for the quick response!

Regards
Kevin.

JohninTonawanda

04-08-06, 03:08 PM

GOT IT! I found the DVD instructions and got it set to 16:9 and it works like it should! Now I don't need to get a new DVD player.. Bummer:)

Thnx Cee9, I will experiment with the differ cabling and see if I notice anything.

Thank You for the quick response!

Regards
Kevin.

Kevin, Do not use s-video, use component instead. Go to monoprice (link above, one of the sponsers of this forum) and buy a component cable.
component cables at Monoprice (http://www.monoprice.com/products/subdepartment.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10235&style=)
The price from them will be a small fraction of what you would pay at your local big box store.(I am serious, you will save $100+ for the same quality cable). Alternatively, your cable provider may have the cables for free. Mine is Adelphia and they will supply a set of component cables with their box.
While you're there, pick up a Tos Cable for your audio -like one of these
audio cables at monoprice (http://www.monoprice.com/products/subdepartment.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10229&style=)

What are you using for watching general TV? The built in OTA (over the air) tuner or a cable box. If you're using a cable box, you should connect that with component or HDMI cables also.

KSLABY

04-08-06, 04:28 PM

Thanks John! I have no "general" TV yet. I haven't decided if I want cable, direct tv, dishnet, or simply a UHF antenna, etc so I am watching DVD's or nothing right now.. I'm cheap..LOL.. :D

I just got my 50ft, s-vid cable from there so I am familiar with the great prices/service (plug-plug:)). I have all my electronics in the hall closet (ALL hidden wiring in the walls even to the suround speakers on the walls) so any cables that run to the TV will need to be 50ft long.
What does the component cables give me that the s-vid doesn't and what's special about a Tos cable? I've never heard of that.. (newbie)

THNX!
KS

JohninTonawanda

04-08-06, 07:28 PM

What does the component cables give me that the s-vid doesn't and what's special about a Tos cable? I've never heard of that.. (newbie)

THNX!
KS

I will need to leave the explanation to one of the many people here more knowledgeable than I but I believe that s-video cant handle the same bandwidth as component. Sort of like listening to a good stereo with just one speaker hooked up.
Do you live in an area with any over the air high definition programming. I get many stations here with my $6 radioshack antenna stuck on the back of the set.
I suggest you visit antenna web to see what digital stations are available in your area so you can enjoy this zenith to the max.
antennaweb (http://www.antennaweb.org/aw/welcome.aspx)

ToolFanRay

04-09-06, 09:21 PM

mfan

04-10-06, 01:27 AM

Howdy!
Silly question. Is it true that I MUST have a digital cable box to get any local HD channels such as NBC, CBS, Fox etc? I still havent gotten around to getting a HD cable box from Time Warner Cable. Is there an antanea that i could purchase at a brick and mortar shop locally? Is there any specific brand or model that would work really well with this tv? And lastly, how would I hook it up?
I know, I know, i should get a HD cable box, but I'm thinking of switching to a different cable provider, one with more and a better selection of HD channels than time warner.
Thanks much for any help

No, that's not true. I can get local HD channels OTA using the built-in ATSC tuner plus a small table top anntenna. I also get them thru my Comcast cable service with the built-in QAM tuner. I only have the very basic analog Comcast service for ~$16/month, so I was surprised that I can pick up the cable HD signals for NBC, ABC, CBS, Fox and a few other local channels.

You should be able to use any UHF antenna. The brand and model has nothing to do with your TV. They have to do with the strength and direction of signals. If the stations you want to receive are scattered across a wide angle, an omni-directional antenna would be best, so you won't need to re-orient it for different channels. However, if the signals are weak, then you'll need a directional antenna for its greater pick up strength.

eddiwill

04-10-06, 01:55 PM

JohninTonawanda

04-10-06, 05:24 PM

eddiwill

04-10-06, 05:29 PM

I use one I've had a good while; I was just "lazy" about seting up with the new TV for awhile. Once I did, it was great!

Oh, the model of the remote is the H659.

Chilli_Dog

04-10-06, 10:55 PM

So, has anyone gotten the flashing repaired yet? Mine did it again the other night (after using the tuner for a short period of time). Most of the time, I use the D* tuner, so it's not a big deal. But, it is annoying. And it feels like we're not getting our total money's worth out of the set. Besides, how many other TVs have you had where you couldn't switch inputs without screwing up the picture??? :rolleyes:

Anyway, still love the TV, but would like to know if Zenith has a fix for it (before handing it off to the local repair shop).

bacardi 151

04-11-06, 12:49 PM

bacardi 151

04-11-06, 05:07 PM

Bump! Like to get my above question answered on the Vizio vs open box Zenith...

CentralKY05

04-11-06, 05:16 PM

I was planning on getting a Vizio 50" from a membership store...Then I went to a chain electronic store and found an OPEN BOX Zenith Z50PX2D 50" for $300 more then the Vizio...The picture looked great on the Zenith, but I'm not an expert...I was planning on getting a warranty to either tv (not sure I one can get a warranty from a membership store of the Vizio)...

I've done some research and the Vizio doesn't have a HD tuner which doesn't matter to me...Thre's also some complaints from the Vizios high gloss black exterior causing glare...Finally I've also heard the Vizio has a loud buzz to it when the Zenith is near silent, but the Zenith runs very hot...Clearly the Zenith is a better TV, but my question is if a floor model Zenith with warranty is a better buy then the Vizio?

Next question is what flaws do I look for in the Zenith?

Finally, I've heard there are cheaper extended warranties online vs chain store extended warranties...Can anyone recommend a site or too that's been good with the Zenith or should I just get the chain store extended warranty?

I bought the 50" Zenith the day before the Super Bowl. I liked it, but continually read on this forum and others (CNET) what a tremendous value the 50" Vizio was. So, I ordered the Vizio directly from the manufacturer with the intention of taking the Zenith back when it arrived and thus pocketing $500. However, when the Vizio arrived I was TREMENDOUSLY disappointed. The picture was significantly inferior to the Zenith. It picture lacked depth and wasn't nearly as lifelike as the Zenith. I wanted so badly for it to be equal, but it just wasn't even close. I called Vizio and they agreed to take it back on my shipping dime. That was $400+, so I sold the Vizio locally at a $500 loss just to get rid of it. The odds are that I may have not even known the that Vizio was inferior had I bought it first and had nothing to compare it to. However, the Zenith simply blew it away. I would go with the Zenith over the Vizio any day of the week. Buying an open box plasma is another matter. Any chance you can find out the circumstances surrounding the return?

spam70

04-12-06, 12:26 AM

Thanks, Joe! I got a Sanus from Costco that I'm gonna try out. If it doesn't work, I'll try the Omnimount. Thanks for point out about the stud center.
Hi,

I am trying to wall mount my Zenith. It is currently mounted on the table.

How do I take the legs/stand out? I see that there are 3 screws on each side just below the the holes in which wall mounts screws would go. Do I unscrew these six screws and pull out legs?

Just want to check with the experts here before "screwing" abound with my TV..

bacardi 151

04-12-06, 11:30 AM

I bought the 50" Zenith the day before the Super Bowl. I liked it, but continually read on this forum and others (CNET) what a tremendous value the 50" Vizio was. So, I ordered the Vizio directly from the manufacturer with the intention of taking the Zenith back when it arrived and thus pocketing $500. However, when the Vizio arrived I was TREMENDOUSLY disappointed. The picture was significantly inferior to the Zenith. It picture lacked depth and wasn't nearly as lifelike as the Zenith. I wanted so badly for it to be equal, but it just wasn't even close. I called Vizio and they agreed to take it back on my shipping dime. That was $400+, so I sold the Vizio locally at a $500 loss just to get rid of it. The odds are that I may have not even known the that Vizio was inferior had I bought it first and had nothing to compare it to. However, the Zenith simply blew it away. I would go with the Zenith over the Vizio any day of the week. Buying an open box plasma is another matter. Any chance you can find out the circumstances surrounding the return?

Thanks for your insight...Called the chain store yesterday morning and they still had it...Planned on picking it up last night...Went there and it was gone already!

Guess it's the Vizio for me unless I win the lottery... lol BTW, how was the difference in fan-noise? I keep on reading that the Zenith is silent and the Vizio is the loudest...

jaypb

04-12-06, 12:01 PM

Hi,

I am trying to wall mount my Zenith. It is currently mounted on the table.

How do I take the legs/stand out? I see that there are 3 screws on each side just below the the holes in which wall mounts screws would go. Do I unscrew these six screws and pull out legs?

Just want to check with the experts here before "screwing" abound with my TV..

If you go back to page 2 or 3 of this thread you'll see forum member JOEQ's description of how he removed the screws IIRC.

KSLABY

04-12-06, 02:00 PM

Hi,

I am trying to wall mount my Zenith. It is currently mounted on the table.

How do I take the legs/stand out? I see that there are 3 screws on each side just below the the holes in which wall mounts screws would go. Do I unscrew these six screws and pull out legs?

Just want to check with the experts here before "screwing" abound with my TV..
Yep, remove the screws and then pull the stand off.

ks

spam70

04-12-06, 03:44 PM

Thanks... KSLABY and jaypb

Hoowahman

04-14-06, 04:48 PM

As one of the "original flashers," I just wanted to restate for those that missedit that my flashing disapeared COMPLETELY once I programmed my Harmony remote to switch functions, thereby bypassing the "cycling through" settings method you use with the Zenith remote.

Taking the Zenith DIRECTLY to the desired input vs clicking until you arrive there seemed to do it for me. Approaching 450 hours on this thing. I love it (and so does everyone else who sees it, whichis a nice plus)!

eddiwill,
You are able to program in the function of going directly to an input instead of cycling? I hate that about the TVs remote and it drives me nuts. I use component 1 and 2 and having to go from 2 to 1...is a crappy task. If this remote would fix that problem and the problem of having to turn on my reciever and put it to the correct input everytime then I may just get one. How does it learn what signals it needs to send to go directly to a certain input since the factory remote doesnt do it? Thanks for any input. =)

eddiwill

04-14-06, 06:24 PM

Hoowahman,

It does all that and MUCH more. It's all web based. You hook the remote to your computer via USB and select what devices you have. You then select "Activities" (Watch Movie, Watch TV, Listen to Music, etc.). A button or screen item is assigned to each of those activities and the remote then turns on/off the corrcet devices as well as the correct inputs/outputs. Plus, they have great telephone support. Last time I called, the guy set up a few things I hadn't thought of, I then reconnected my remote, got the new settings and that's all there was. And it solved my "flashing" issue, which was just a cool bonus.

bmrich

05-13-06, 10:07 PM

DeezMFNutz

05-14-06, 06:50 PM

I just bought my z50 today from circuit city at a great price. However I think they charge an excessive price for a 3 year extended warranty. I am thinking of not getting it and taking my chances. I just wondered how many of you zenith owners have extended warranties. And do you consider it a bad gamble on my part? Also, the salesman said I should buy a cicuit filter/breaker for the tv. Is this a real issue?

Great price on this set at CC right now. They are running an email coupon ontop of their advertised price, plus Zenith is running a 200 dollar factory direct rebate making for a super deal on this panel right now. I picked one up this afternoon to replace my 42" Zenith EDTV that has served very well for the past 18 months. Just finished hanging the unit on the wall, install went like a charm; picture is great. AWESOME deal on a great set. Hopefully the prices on 60 inchers with drop a similar amount in the next 18 months........thats next.

As for the warranty I purchased the TV with a CC that double my warranty to a total of 2 years which is plenty IMHO.

bmrich

05-16-06, 07:16 PM

Great price on this set at CC right now. They are running an email coupon ontop of their advertised price, plus Zenith is running a 200 dollar factory direct rebate making for a super deal on this panel right now. I picked one up this afternoon to replace my 42" Zenith EDTV that has served very well for the past 18 months. Just finished hanging the unit on the wall, install went like a charm; picture is great. AWESOME deal on a great set. Hopefully the prices on 60 inchers with drop a similar amount in the next 18 months........thats next.

As for the warranty I purchased the TV with a CC that double my warranty to a total of 2 years which is plenty IMHO.

Thanks for the input. I checked with my credit card company and they also double the warranty. I feel better now.

bmrich

05-16-06, 07:24 PM

sixliner6

05-16-06, 10:42 PM

jaypb

05-17-06, 09:24 AM

Long time no post...... :)

Had an interesting issue on Saturday night. Fell asleep on the couch with the TV on and awoke to a TOTALLY pink tinted picture! I thought I was dreaming....and suddenly realized that I wasn't....as I changed from channel to channel with my D* HDTIVO remote everything was tinted pink! I started to freak....panic....flip. I'm sure you all know the feeling. So I decided to riggle the HDMI cable at the back of the Zenith...and lo and behold the picture went back to normal. Never had an issue before...and haven't had an issue since.

Anyone else have fun stuff WRT their HDMI connection ?!?!? :confused:

cet98

05-17-06, 03:20 PM

I use my set for tv, no pc or games. How concerned should I be about image stick? Also, the manual states that if I choose inversion (rather than pixel orbit) that the image will invert every 30 minutes. I thought that meant briefly every 30 minutes but when I chose it, it remained inverted. Is that what it's supposed to do? By the way, so far I think the Z50PX2D has a super display and more features than I'll ever need.

bmrich...
do not be so concerned...image stick (burn-in) should not happen to you if this is primarily a TV monitor...
I am approaching 200 hours and watch everything from ESPN, TNT and USA that continue to broadcast their stationary logos and have never experienced anything that resembles burn-in...
I will say that I have had the Orbitizer mode on since day one (it shifts the entire image every two minutes in multiple directions) and appreciate the new technology that not only helps to prevent burn-in, but helps to relieve the stress of being so concerned about it in the first place!!!...

Enjoy your Z50...it's a wonderful plasma.. :cool:

cet98

05-17-06, 03:31 PM

Just a couple questions cause I'm new. I bought an ''open box'' at CC and checked the hours and it said 60hrs. As I've heard there is a break in period? What can I do to properly break this TV in? Also is there any way CC could reset the hours use? This is my first plasma so I'm learning as I go. Thanks

sixliner6...
the recommended break-in period is somewhere between 100-200 hours of use...
please refer to this link for a far more detailed explanation...
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=608677
as for the reset question...you can't "get back" your hours of use, so you can't "reset" a plasma...also, in order to accurately monitor your usage (ie: break-in period) it only makes sense to be "honest" with yourself...
don't worry...60 hours is nothing in comparison to how many hours to have left!!!

enjoy your Z50...!!!!

Chilli_Dog

05-18-06, 12:39 AM

<snip>

Fell asleep on the couch with the TV on and awoke to a TOTALLY pink tinted picture! I thought I was dreaming....and suddenly realized that I wasn't....as I changed from channel to channel with my D* HDTIVO remote everything was tinted pink! I started to freak....panic....flip. I'm sure you all know the feeling. So I decided to riggle the HDMI cable at the back of the Zenith...and lo and behold the picture went back to normal. Never had an issue before...and haven't had an issue since.

Anyone else have fun stuff WRT their HDMI connection ?!?!? :confused:
The HD-TIVOs are known to have issues with their HDMI connectors. Several have gone bad. Maybe yours is starting to have problems as well... :(

Eagles Dare

05-18-06, 10:15 AM

sixliner6...
the recommended break-in period is somewhere between 100-200 hours of use...
please refer to this link for a far more detailed explanation...
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=608677
as for the reset question...you can't "get back" your hours of use, so you can't "reset" a plasma...also, in order to accurately monitor your usage (ie: break-in period) it only makes sense to be "honest" with yourself...
don't worry...60 hours is nothing in comparison to how many hours to have left!!!

enjoy your Z50...!!!!

I think he's concerned that the store could've reset the hours meter to show less than the actual hours used, not that he wanted them to do it for him. 60 hours is pretty low for a showroom/demo unit.

I doubt there's an easy way they could pull this on him. If so, it would kind of defeat the purpose of having an hours meter to begin with.

jaypb

05-18-06, 01:11 PM

The HD-TIVOs are known to have issues with their HDMI connectors. Several have gone bad. Maybe yours is starting to have problems as well... :(

Yeah, I thought about that along the way. But, I remember the first time I hooked up my original D* HD box (Samsung 360) via DVI--->HDMI, I had some picture/connectivity issues whenever I moved the TV/wire/receiver. So, I'm *thinking* that whatever issues I may be having are related to the HDMI input on the back of the TV (i.e. loose connection) as the current cable is a different one from the original DVI---HDMI cable I had with the Samsung.

Either way everything is status quo now. But it's still something I don't want to have to think/worry about :(

sixliner6

05-18-06, 06:35 PM

Eagles Dare that is exactly what I meant. Thanks. They told me that the people that bought the TV were overwhelmed with the size in their home so they returned it. So I got a good deal. I hope.

jdang

05-19-06, 04:29 AM

I just did a search through this thread but didn't find anything. My friend has this TV and a Dish HD receiver, the 411 model. No matter what we set either the tv or the receiver to, there are black bars top and bottom (letterbox) on the channels. On HD channels there are the letterbox when it should be full, on SD channels there are black bars top/bottom as well as on the side (those are normal I know). How come I cannot get the letterbox to go away? This was with ESPNHD, DiscoveryHD and PBSHD I recall.

JohninTonawanda

05-19-06, 09:44 AM

jdang

05-19-06, 05:20 PM

HDMI. Just bought them a cable from monoprice. The letterbox just will not go away.

JohninTonawanda

05-19-06, 07:58 PM

HDMI. Just bought them a cable from monoprice. The letterbox just will not go away.

May I suggest you buy a cheap OTA antenna and see if you can receive HD content using the tv's internal tuner. This may show if the problem is with the TV or the Dish HD receiver. I see you are in San Diego, I imagine that you should be able to receive a few HD OTA signals with a cheap radioshack indoor antenna.

And, (here I hope I am not being insulting- I see you are a senior member and I am just some schmuck who happens to own the same TV) you need to be sure the TV input is set to use HDMI using either the remote or the button on the front of the TV which toggles through the different inputs.

vpass24

05-22-06, 01:50 AM

bmrich

05-22-06, 12:52 PM

I think he's concerned that the store could've reset the hours meter to show less than the actual hours used, not that he wanted them to do it for him. 60 hours is pretty low for a showroom/demo unit.

I doubt there's an easy way they could pull this on him. If so, it would kind of defeat the purpose of having an hours meter to begin with.

How does one access the number of hours of use?

jdang

05-22-06, 08:03 PM

And, (here I hope I am not being insulting- I see you are a senior member and I am just some schmuck who happens to own the same TV) you need to be sure the TV input is set to use HDMI using either the remote or the button on the front of the TV which toggles through the different inputs.
No need to hope you are not being insulting. It isn't my TV and I was brought in to help figure it out. Never safe to assume anything, that's how problems get missed. :)

I am pretty sure it is set to HDMI, and it is the only source anyway. Good idea on the antenna, I will check that out.

Eagles Dare

05-26-06, 12:13 PM

No need to hope you are not being insulting. It isn't my TV and I was brought in to help figure it out. Never safe to assume anything, that's how problems get missed. :)

I am pretty sure it is set to HDMI, and it is the only source anyway. Good idea on the antenna, I will check that out.

You also need to set the DISH 411 to the proper aspect ratio. I believe this is done with the "*" button on the remote. I'd set the Zenith to "Set by Program" via the "Ratio" button first (make sure you're on the "HDMI/DVI" input first). That should show you what the DISH receiver is outputting. My guess is you don't have the 411 set correctly as it was probably used with a SDTV before.

JC II

05-30-06, 07:32 AM

Have had this TV since January. On Sunday, as my nephew was watching one of the various children's channels, I looked up and noticed the whole screen had a blueish tint. Freaked me out a bit, and I hit channel up and then back down a few times, to no luck. Switched to one of the HD channels, and the picture went back to normal. I did not touch the connections at all. Might have been a cable box issue. Any thoughts are appreciated.

JC II

05-30-06, 02:31 PM

Does anyone use this remote (or similar)? If so, what code provides the most function? Using 0178 (given by OFA support), I only get power on/off and can get the menu to come up, but am not able to navigate the menu. Also, no ratio control. If I can get the menu navigation and ratio contol to work, that would be most of what I'd need. Thanks for any help.

emailcraigs

06-07-06, 11:58 PM

From another post on this board I discovered that the problem I was having with my screen shrinking is that I had the orbiter function in the ISM section enabled. Does anybody know why this function makes the right-side of your screen lose the use of a band of pixels all the way down the TV? It seems strange that you would have to put up with that to have the Orbiter defense against burn-in, ghosting, etc. Any comments would be appreciated.

LawrenceJ

06-08-06, 12:43 AM

every 2 min it will shift, left, right, up and down, I think thats the motions it takes.
after a while you just get used to it , and most times you wont even catch it moving.

LawrenceJ

06-08-06, 12:46 AM

JC II

06-08-06, 07:52 AM

odd , its an LG tv, try 0056 , I dont have your remote, but LG codes do control this tv.

Thanks for the response. I think 0056 was the first LG code I tried. If my memory is correct, that got me power on/off, but nothing else. My One4All is about 3 years old, so maybe that is part of the problem. I contacted customer service, and they sent me a list of manual codes and some instructions, but despite being an engineer and somewhat used to deciphering things, it was all gibberish to me.

In the meantime, I found a very good deal on a Harmony 880, which should arrive today, and although I would rather have gotten the One4All to work, this was too good to pass up. Hopefully it will work well with the TV.

Thanks again for your response.

Eagles Dare

06-08-06, 09:04 PM

In the meantime, I found a very good deal on a Harmony 880, which should arrive today, and although I would rather have gotten the One4All to work, this was too good to pass up. Hopefully it will work well with the TV.

From a certain well known 'puter company?

I almost sprung for one myself, but just got my wife trained how to use the zenith remote for the TV and our RShack (OFA in disguise) universal for everything else. Remote partially works on the TV too. Don't remember what code I used, but on/off, volume, channel, and input switching definately work on the RS remote. I'll check the code and let you know.

emailcraigs

06-08-06, 10:33 PM

teamgoon

06-08-06, 10:36 PM

Anyone have an opinion on this set or is it to new?
I was all set to get the commercial Panasonic 50" when a previous TV I had took a dump and now I have a fair amount of store credit at one of the super stores. They sell the 50" consumer Panny and this Zenith which is actually a few dollars less than the Panny. Now I guess I need to rethink what TV I am getting as the commercial model is out of the question.

The Zenith is a rebadged LG. Life's Good :rolleyes:

teamgoon

06-08-06, 10:36 PM

teamgoon

06-08-06, 10:36 PM

teamgoon

06-08-06, 10:37 PM

teamgoon

06-08-06, 10:37 PM

JC II

06-09-06, 07:34 AM

[QUOTE=Eagles Dare]From a certain well known 'puter company? QUOTE]

That's the one. It came yesterday. Still working through it all, but it definitely gets more control than I got with the One4All. Not sure if I actually like the remote itself, though (buttons, position, size, etc.) I really liked the OFA in those respects. I might look at the Harmony 550 as well.

It's possible the LG codes would have worked for channel up/down and volume on the OFA, but I had volume locked to receiver and channel switching to the cable box. Couldn't figure out how to get the inputs switched.

Eagles Dare

06-09-06, 09:45 AM

JC II

06-09-06, 12:22 PM

I checked, it is the 0056 code that I'm using. What works:

Power (on/off)
volume
channel up/down
numeric keypad (direct access to channels)
"last"- (channel recall)
"TV/VCR" - switches between all the inputs
"sleep" - interestingly brings up a "recent channels" list, which you can't navigate (see below)

Popular buttons that don't work(don't even send a signal):

menu
navigation keys (arrows and the select button)
ratio

My RS remote is a learning type so I could program these keys to work. Probably will sometime when I get a free minute. For now, I still use the zenith's remote for the TV and the universal for everything else.

If I could have gotten the navigation keys and the ratio button the work, I'd have probably stuck with the OFA. Could have certainly done the learning thing, but I just got aggravated, and pulled the trigger on the 880. I'll give it a shot. Thanks for checking and your responses.

LawrenceJ

06-09-06, 09:36 PM

When you enable Orbiter does the right side of your TV basically lose about 5 or 6 lines of pixels which are muted while orbiter is on? I've never actually saw it move. I first noticed it because the black border on the right side of the screen appeared larger than the left hand side. Yours looks like that as well? Thanks for sharing your experience!

You loose the 5 or 6 lines , but it does move around every 2 mins.

Just stare at the tv you will see it move, as long as you dont blink when it switches.

eddiwill

06-13-06, 11:30 AM

Update on the Batman returns "torture test" scene.

I watched it last night on HBO's HD channel and it looked FANTASTIC. VERY little in the way of banding/artifacting. Just makes me want "them" to hurry up with the HD/Blu-Ray or WHATEVER format, 'cuz it's just gonna look a LOT better!

KingOfHearts

06-15-06, 05:27 PM

Awesome picture. Got it from CC. Have not yet bought the extended warranty. Does anybody have recommendations on the warranty's from warrantech/repairtech ? CC Ext warr is expensive -$500 ....
TIA

eddiwill

06-19-06, 09:20 AM

I used to buy the extended on ALL my "big ticket" items. When I bought this TV back in February, I looked around and the warranties were fairly high, IMO. I came across this link describing the "bath tub curve" (http://www.weibull.com/hotwire/issue21/hottopics21.htm) and decided that's the way I would go (no extended warranty). So far so good... of course, YMMV.

Middet

06-23-06, 06:01 PM

I have the Z50PX2D and love it. Problem is, I have it on a wall mount, but just purchased a nice cabinet to put it on, and can't find the original tabletop stand that came with it. I called Zenith, LG, BB, and CC, and nobody can help. Does anyone happen to have a stand they'll never use and wish to part with? I'll gladly pay shipping plus a reasonable amount for what you think it might be worth.

Many TIA.

Mike
703-437-7116

Middet

06-23-06, 10:51 PM

Please ignore previous post. We finally found our tabletop stand. Sorry for false alarm.

Mike

benwilard

06-25-06, 06:19 PM

Well I've had this set for three months and a day. As my wife was watching a movie yesterday, she heard a couple cracking? sounds then the picture went real dark as if the brightness was turned all the way down. I'll call Zenith (LG) tomorrow and see how they are at fixing this plasma. I've been extremely pleased this far with the set, let's see if Zenith keeps me a happy devoted customer! Ron.

eddiwill

06-27-06, 12:34 PM

How did that service call go? Curious, as I am considering having my buzzing in bright scenes looked at.

benwilard

06-27-06, 07:22 PM

KSLABY

06-29-06, 01:27 PM

I have developed a problem with mine. For no reason it will turn off. I try to turn it back on and it will turn off after 2 seconds to 15 minutes. I'll go through this 5-10 times and it keeps turning it's self off. I unplugged it from the wall for 30 minutes and same thing.
Once it comes on it will work fine all day and for several weeks then while I'm watching it it will all of a sudden turn off again.
This is very sporadic and I even left it on all day while i was at work and never turned it off until I would go to bed and it has worked fine all week.

Any ideas what may be causing it? I have the extended warranty but it's hard to "fix" when it's not acting up..

Kevin.

static14

07-05-06, 09:57 PM

i just picked up a Z50PX2D last weekend and i'm loving the picture. definitely a huge step up from my hlp4674.

i am curious thought if anyone knows if this tv downconverts 1080i to 540, or if it converts directly to it's native res?

either way hd dvd looks killer :)

A7thson

07-06-06, 04:35 PM

anyone knows if this tv downconverts 1080i to 540, or if it converts directly to it's native res?

I believe this was covered in previous posts, if you do a search in the thread for native res it should come up, but if I read it correctly the short answer is it downconverts to 720p

gee_lo

07-17-06, 02:15 PM

I am having this same problem too!!! Does anybody know if there is a workaround to this? Maybe an edit in the setup menu? Is everyone experiencing this issue?

I watch all my non-HD programs in Horizon, but every time I turn off the TV, it defaults back to "Set By Program" when it turns back on. This means I have to toggle through the ratio modes whenever I power it up.

I ALSO own the LG 42PX5D. This is essentially the same TV, but the LG does NOT have this problem. It reverts to the "Horizon" mode when I power it back up. I consider this a major inconvinience.

Telephone Customer Support said that this is how it is supposed to work. But she also didn't sound like she knew what the hell she was talking about.

Thoughts?

Angelo

I realize that Horizon doesn't work for the HD signal and agree that it's aggravating to have the "fake" HD with the black bars. My main concern, though, is that I can set the ratio to Horizon to watch one of the non-HD channels (say FX), and if I switch back and forth between FX and say ESPNHD, FX will be Horizon and ESPNHD will be "Set by Program". That's how I'd prefer the settings to stay unless I override them. When I turn the TV off, the ratio settings default to Set by Program. Just wondering if it does that for everyone or if there's a fault with either my TV or my settings.

dane2525

07-19-06, 07:55 PM

My Zenith made a loud POP and the picture went out. I unplugged it and then plugged it back in. The picture and sound came on for a split second and went out again. Called Zenith support and they told me it would be 3 to 5 days before they find someone around my location (Northwest Florida) to look at it. :mad: My guess is the high power whatchamacallit went out. Only had it for 8 months. First problem I've had with it. Anyone else had this happen?

swodaddy

07-31-06, 06:45 PM

The Zenith seems like the best bang for your buck out right now. I want to know if people would agree with that statement, or recommend a different 50" Plasma roughly the same price. Thanks.

dane2525

07-31-06, 08:22 PM

I'm still waiting for Zenith to get someone to fix mine. Customer service is real bad, so far. I can't get them to answer the phone to get a status report. E mail does nor work either. If I knew this was going to happen I would have bought one from a company with better customer service.

Dane2525

benwilard

08-04-06, 11:58 PM

My wife called yesterday and Zenith gave us a local repair shop number to call. The service shop was able to make it out today (just left two minutes ago). They are gonna order some boards for the TV. So far pretty painless, far from over I know though. I'll continue to post results.

Well, the repairman came with the replacement PCB's (printed circuit boards) on Wednesday (Aug 2nd) and still a bad picture. So, now he calls Zenith and they suggest (guess) on replacing a different PCB. I'm guessing this'll take a couple weeks to see if this fixes it.

Dane, my wife described a loud crack sound and our picture went to a dark faded picture. We only had it a couple months. We're obviously in the repair stage now. When my wife called Zenith asking for a "loaner" we were denied and told to wait for this next repair. If that doesn't fix it we'll have to "review our options" whatever that means. We'll see.....

dane2525

08-05-06, 10:38 AM

Zenith finally got a company out to my house and picked up our plasma. It will be another week or two, depending on parts, before I get it back. I like the TV but service is lacking.

Joe Q

08-05-06, 11:07 AM

The Zenith seems like the best bang for your buck out right now. I want to know if people would agree with that statement, or recommend a different 50" Plasma roughly the same price. Thanks.

You know what they say about opinions:)

With that said, I am perfectly happy with this 50" Zenith which I bought last November.

I wish it had more than 1 HDMI input (I use a switcher) but at least it has one because that is now a show stopper for TV's that don't have HDMI inputs.

I have my HDTIVO hooked to the Zenith and just this week, I took the plunge and got the Toshiba HD-DVD.

Wow is all I can say about that.
I stopped watching DVD's around December because with all the HD content out now (and having a lot of stuff on the HDTIVO), DVD's looked kind of cruddy to me.

Not now!
HDDVD's look amazing on this set and the upconverted SD DVD's look almost HD like.

And that is where the HDMI issue comes into play.

As far as this TV goes, this is probably the next to last TV I will buy.
When proper 1080P 55" Plasmas come out that are affordable then I replace the Zenith and am done.

benwilard

08-12-06, 01:07 AM

Well, the repairman came with the replacement PCB's (printed circuit boards) on Wednesday (Aug 2nd) and still a bad picture. So, now he calls Zenith and they suggest (guess) on replacing a different PCB. I'm guessing this'll take a couple weeks to see if this fixes it.

Dane, my wife described a loud crack sound and our picture went to a dark faded picture. We only had it a couple months. We're obviously in the repair stage now. When my wife called Zenith asking for a "loaner" we were denied and told to wait for this next repair. If that doesn't fix it we'll have to "review our options" whatever that means. We'll see.....

Mr. repairman showed up today (8/11/2006) with the other PCB. Installed it and WOOHOO! We got our TV back. I thought for sure we were gonna need a replacement TV. I'm glad that fixed it. I hope this will be the last of the problems we have with this set, knock on wood!

I think we were without our plasma about six weeks. It wasn't too bad. It made me do other things besides sit in front of the tube every night! All in all, I'm still a happy camper.

Joe Q

08-12-06, 09:34 AM

I think we were without our plasma about six weeks. It wasn't too bad. It made me do other things besides sit in front of the tube every night! All in all, I'm still a happy camper.

As a reward to yourself , I think you should buy the Toshiba HD-A1 HDDVD player.

The HDDVD's look stunning on this TV and being an upconvertor (if you use your HDMI input), regular DVD's are amazing to watch.

Joe

cheridave

08-13-06, 11:19 AM

Sounds like snake oil.

Care to elaborate on your solution?

Mods Note:

Please do not respond here.

Take it off line.

If you do post here it will be deleted.

Dave

shiboy

08-13-06, 08:37 PM

Does anyone know where I can purchase replacement plastic speaker connector for the Zenith XBS344 home theatre system?

carlos0001025

08-27-06, 01:32 AM

Looking to purchase Zenith 50 or pioneer 5070. Do you guys really think the pioneer if worth the extra cash.

yeafmm

08-27-06, 11:00 AM

Well I purchased the Zenith this past Friday night at CC for under 2K I am going to pick it up when I get home from vacation next week so I will let you all know what I think.

pajer

08-27-06, 08:55 PM

you will love it, have had mine since mid february and have not had any problems, 99% of the quality of the top rated panny but at nearly 1/2 the cost. Enjoy!! pajer

pork of the dork

08-29-06, 04:23 PM

Does anyone know the on/off macros for the Zenith Z50PX2D?

ropergilson

09-07-06, 02:37 AM

Got my zenith over the weekend and love it! just 2 questions though. 1. how do you get the hour meter to come up? 2. I have a mac mini setup through hdmi and every so often I get a flash of white junk on the screen, tried another computer, same thing. any ideas?

A7thson

09-07-06, 08:03 AM

If I remember correctly its press menu on the tv and the remote at the same time -twice. I'm not in front of the tv to try it so I'm not 100% positive. There have been other posts in the thread about it so if that doesn't work do a search and you'll find it. Flashing has been an often talked about issue in the thread hopefully you didn't get a bad one. Concensus was that it had something to do with using the internal tuner. Again do a search on flashing and you can read all about it.

yeafmm

09-07-06, 09:08 AM

Well yes I do love it!!!! I honestly think for under 2K for a 50" Plasma you really cant go wrong. I have it hooked up to my D** H20 with a $22.50 Philips HDMI cable and the HD looks great!!! I knew the regular channels were not going to look anywhere as good but I am still pleased with them. Watched the BoSox and Whitesox last night on ESPN HD and was like being there!!! Next I am going to pick up the Panasonic DVDS52 Upconvert and off we go!!!!!!

ropergilson

09-07-06, 07:48 PM

jaypb

09-07-06, 10:38 PM

Well, I got 28hrs on my tv and have that famous white flash I have heard so much about. Will zenith fix this, or is that a waste of time? (will it come back) other than getting the logitech remote, what other way is there to get rid of this? thanks

Have you used the internal tuner on the TV set yet? IOW's the OTA tuner? I can honestly say (since I *think*) I'm the original poster who brough the issue up, that it's the OTA tuner that causes this. I know some have said that "cycling" through inputs with the remote is the cause, but I HAVE NOT used the OTA tuner since I hooked up my HDTIVO back in Jan/Feb or so....and I HAVE NOT seen ANY flashing since then. I have watched DVD's (i.e. have cycled between inputs) but haven't seen "the flash".

I'm still loving this TV. So far, so good! :D

ropergilson

09-07-06, 11:40 PM

The OTA tuner is what im using, just love the free hd broadcasts I get here. if I were to just use the cable tuner and not the OTA tuner, the problem should go away hopefully?

jaypb

09-08-06, 08:20 AM

The OTA tuner is what im using, just love the free hd broadcasts I get here. if I were to just use the cable tuner and not the OTA tuner, the problem should go away hopefully?

I'm not sure WRT the internal cable tuner (QAM??) vs the OTA and the flashing. All I can say is that since I stopped using the internal tuner (and in my case it was solely the OTA ATSC area) I haven't seen ONE flash.

You can give the cable tuner a test and see....or put very simply, try and stay away from the OTA tuner for a full day and watch other sources (DVD/VCR/Video Games, etc...) and see if you notice the flashing on those inputs.

yeafmm

09-08-06, 08:22 AM

I also am NOT using the OTA tuner either. So far I have NOT had this issue. I will keep you all posted if I do. SO far I am loving this TV!

ropergilson

09-08-06, 09:34 AM

Ill give that a shot. I dont really want the standard OTA anyhow, barely anything comes in. I really just use the OTA ASTSC tuner and the cable. thanks.

ropergilson

09-09-06, 10:06 PM

that seems to have helped, regular tuning is fine, just had it a few times when i was using the computer. Speaking of the computer, I ahve it set to 1280x720, and i get a black band of a few inches of dead space around the screen. the adjust button doesnt bring up the adjustment menu unless I do it while the computer is booting, or if i use the vga input. what could cause this?

A7thson

09-12-06, 07:46 AM

tv recommended resolution is 1024 x 768 at a refresh of 60 anything else seems to give me problems. Others have had some luck with different settings but not much

ropergilson

09-16-06, 12:48 AM

damn the white flash! it seems it still does it after i stopped using the analog OTA, I still use the digital. has anyone had sucess in getting zenith to repair this?

Green96ta

09-16-06, 05:50 AM

I bought the Z50PX2D this week and noticed something between the glass and screen. It looks like dust or something blocking 6 pixels (rectangle). There appears to be light behind the object, and it has a rough shape... not like 6 dead pixels would look. I cannot tell if its an imperfection in the glass itself, part of the plasma screen, or dust. Any suggestions on what I should do? I had it delivered from a big chain and its just 1 week old.

Thanks,
Daniel

djbrough

09-18-06, 12:00 PM

eddiwill

09-18-06, 04:21 PM

Did not have my "flash" repaired (see way back in this thread), but found that once I started using the Harmony remote, it stooped.

Basically, I found that it was the cycling through the various inputs via the basic remote that would bring about the flash. Since the harmony just "jumps" right to the correct input, I never have the flash anymore.

will e

09-19-06, 02:20 PM

2ndsteel

09-20-06, 02:29 PM

I am new to this forum and purchased my Z50 at CC a few days ago. Then I found this thread and read all of the post. Very informative. I have Dish scheduled to upgrade to the 622 HDPVR on Sat. I am looking forward to getting some HD material, but I do have to say that this is so much better than the 12 yr old RP Magnavox that I have been thrilled. This was the display unit and I was shocked to find that it had 4730 hrs of use. Still with the rated life of the plasmas I should be good and I don't have to worry about breakin. Still learning but the wealth of information on this forum is amazing. Thanks and proud to be a member.

JohninTonawanda

09-20-06, 02:45 PM

I have Dish scheduled to upgrade to the 622 HDPVR on Sat. I am looking forward to getting some HD material, .

Why wait to view HD? It has an over the air (OTA) tuner built in. Go to this website
http://www.checkhd.com/aw/welcome.aspx
and type in your zip code. Perhaps you live in an area where there are local HD broadcast stations that you can receive with a $15 radio shack antenna.
I use something like this (http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062079&cp=&pg=2&y=11&origkw=antenna&x=14&kw=antenna&s=A-StorePrice-RSK&numProdsPerPage=20&parentPage=search) and it works fine. It serves as a backup if my cable goes down (and my local cable company doesnt offer FOX in HD but it is broadcast OTA in HD). Of course, if you live in a rural area you may not have luck.
Enjoy

JohninTonawanda

09-20-06, 03:24 PM

Hello All,
I'm new to this forum, and I will be purchasing this TV shortly. I plan on mounting this set directly over my fireplace. I'm having an electrician com in to install power behind the set, and to run the necessary wires through the from the set to the entertainment center on the floor directly next to the fireplace. I have Comcast cable as my provider 9I have the small converter box). My questions are as follows:

1. Exactly what cables should I have pulled behind the wall for this set?
2. Is it possible to connect RG-66 cable directly to this set?
3. Can I mount this thing myself (I have all of the necessary tools)?
4. Are there any tips/ tricks you guys know of that may save me some heartache?

All of your comments are greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Darius

Darius, I would pull them all (except perhaps Composite).
Pull hdmi (http://www.monoprice.com/products/subdepartment.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10240&style=), component-2 sets (http://www.monoprice.com/products/subdepartment.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10235&style=), Optical Audio (http://www.monoprice.com/products/subdepartment.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10229&style=), and if you have a computer nearby (or laptop) pull VGA (http://www.monoprice.com/products/subdepartment.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10201&style=)
I found the VGA great for hooking up a laptop and viewing the desktop on the 50inch plasma.
Of course, the exact cables depend on what your DVD player and set top box support.
Monoprice is the vendor linked above. I bought my cables from them and they are a small fraction of the cost of the big box stores. They are a sponsor or advertiser of this forum too. Remember, you're not going to get HD through S-video of composite cables. Also, i forgot audio cables (unless the digital audio will work for the STB and the HDMI for the DVD player. Everyones set up is different, but it sounds like you have one crack at pulling the wires. Maybe you could have the electrician leave a string to fish additional wires if necessary.

Joe Q

09-20-06, 06:04 PM

okay, I am going to do a search and if I find the answer I will update this post.

I have ordered the Toshiba HD-DVD. I was going to use the HDMI connection to avoid any problems with copyrights.

Page 19 of my TV manual 'HDMI' would indicate to me that the tv only does 720p?
THe Toshiba supports 1080i. Will I not be able to go 1080i or do I not use HDMI or is the manual wrong or am I misreading? :)

Thanks

Update: No real luck from the search (got lots of hits). I see on page 16 in the HDSTB Setup it shows that HDMI/DVI supports 480p, 720p and 1080i.
I read in a post a 'it doesn't matter' kind of thought because there are only 768 lines.

Furhter Update: Yep, looks like it doesn't matter since I have 768 lines. Funny, the 1080i HD programs (over the air) seem to look the best.

I would appricate a confirmation from someone who knows.

I have this TV and the Toshiba HDDVD player hooked to it over HDMI.
Actually, I use an HDMI switch because I also have the HD TIVO hooked to the TV using HDMI.

The TV is officially designated as a 720P TV but there are a few extra pixels as you have noted.

You will want to set the Toshiba to 1080i and let the TV do the scaling to it's native mode.
Recall that DVD's are recorded in 1080 so if you set the player to 720P, it has to do scaling to 720P.
I believe the PQ difference is that the scaler in the TV is better than the scaler in the Toshiba

I have done an A/B comparison and the TV picture is better when the Toshiba is set to 1080i on this TV.

The difference is very subtle but it is better.
It took one of the really good DVD to see any difference. Serenity & Riddick are good ones.

Just MHO.

Also, here is an interesting little test you can do:
There is a Trademark (TM) logo displayed on the TV when the DVD player is on.
The TM letters are barely recognizable when the Toshiba is set to 720P but very readable when set to 1080i

Not MHO - fact :)

slowbiscuit

09-22-06, 07:23 AM

Don't know if this has been posted yet, but for anyone that's bought this from July until end of Sept., Zenith is offering a $200 rebate:

http://www.zenith.com/index.asp?url=./sub_promo/index.asp

djbrough

09-22-06, 10:47 AM

Darius, I would pull them all (except perhaps Composite).
Pull
I found the VGA great for hooking up a laptop and viewing the desktop on the 50inch plasma.
Of course, the exact cables depend on what your DVD player and set top box support.
Monoprice is the vendor linked above. I bought my cables from them and they are a small fraction of the cost of the big box stores. They are a sponsor or advertiser of this forum too. Remember, you're not going to get HD through S-video of composite cables. Also, i forgot audio cables (unless the digital audio will work for the STB and the HDMI for the DVD player. Everyones set up is different, but it sounds like you have one crack at pulling the wires. Maybe you could have the electrician leave a string to fish additional wires if necessary.

Thanks Alot!
Monoprice is the cheapest I've seen for these cables. Is that price per foot? I really want to take a shot at mounting this thing myself, so I'm just goung to have a couple of deep junction boxes set and pull every wiire I can think of to the TV.

Again, I appreciate you help.

regrossman

09-25-06, 02:08 PM

Wow, with the rebate and the price at Circuit City after 10% coupon, this thing is the price of most 42" models, yikes!

I keep hearing everyone mention antenna. Doesnt this TV have a QAM tuner, so it should be able to get local HD broadcasts without an antenna, correct?

swodaddy

09-26-06, 08:04 PM

So what does everyone think about the current price point for the Zenith. Is it too good to pass up, or is the PQ that much better for the panasonic 50 in that it is worth the price?

mmpotash

09-27-06, 12:13 AM

I have Dish Network with a Dish 942 HD Receiver. My deaf girlfriend needs CC to view programs but, unfortunately I'm having problems with this.

The CC when using Dish programs cuts out part of the captioning when I'm using the Zenith to view them, usually a paragraph here and there, sometimes just a few words. I know that Dish is picking it up since when I rewind the show, (this is a HD DVR receiver), this portions missing usually show up but other portions don't. Also they show up normally on my SD TV upstairs that runs off the Dish receiver.

I tried to use the Zenith captioning but the Zenith will not let me turn it on, (it is grayed out). I can turn it on using my other connections to the TV, like my antenna, on but not the HDMI I use with Dish, so I have to use the Dish receiver captioning.

I replaced the Dish receiver but that did not help.

Can someone using the Dish 942 with the Zenith HDTV try the captioning system, both using Dish captioning and, if possible, the Zenith captioning? Maybe Someone else can figure out a solution. Dish Network has no clue and they think it is in my TV since my upstairs SDTV CC works fine.

JellyBellyMD

10-01-06, 04:17 PM

Well, I got 28hrs on my tv and have that famous white flash I have heard so much about. Will zenith fix this, or is that a waste of time? (will it come back) other than getting the logitech remote, what other way is there to get rid of this? thanks
Finally got tired of the flashing issue and called Zenith today. I explained the problem to the CSR and have a tech coming out Wednesday. To ensure they understand the problem, I played a DVD and recorded the flashing to show the tech on Wed. The flashing also occurs when using the PC input. I also printed out the various other comments from users regarding the flashing issue they have to reinforce my position that this is not an isolated issue caused by my dvd player, my hdmi cable, etc......

Chilli_Dog

10-01-06, 06:13 PM

Glad to hear someone is finally getting this fixed. Hope Zenith can take care of you. Let us know how it turns out!

1naylor

10-02-06, 11:47 AM

Does anyone who missed out on the rebate want to SELL their UPC from the box? I just bought a set but it had no box - but I would try to get the rebate from Zenith even though it was an open box item if I had the UPC to send in with my reciept.

Anyone?

Thanks.

90SPGred

10-04-06, 12:57 AM

Background:

I'm simply asking for inputs/thoughts/suggestions. I'm in rural Maine. Viewing OTA HDTV signal for NBC/CBS/ABC/Public Broadcasting about 50% of the time, and Analog Cable (TW) the other 50 %. Occasional DVD.

For the last year I've used Zenith Z42PX2D EDTV and loving it. Perfect out of the box!

A week ago I purchased a Zenith Z50PX2D from CC. Wanted 50", thought HD would be even better. Returnable for 30 days.

Well, the 50" HDTV doesn't really seem to be a noticable improvement over the 42" EDTC, except for being larger. My viewing distance is 11'. The HD PQ may be a bit better, and the SD PQ may be a bit worse. At first the HDTV was not as nice as the old EDTV, so I used AVIA for the 5 basics - White, Black (contrast), Sharpness, Saturation (color) and Hue (tint). That improved things nicely, and viewing was then consistent. Once I determined AVIA best/correct settings I then recorded those settings, and turned the settings down (and Low Power) for the Break-In period.

Seeking Inputs:

After a week, I still don't see that the HDTV is a serious improvement over the old EDTV (given my viewing sources). I may go to TW Cable HD at some point, but 6 months ago I tried it and returned it -very disappointing! I may go to a Dish or Direct satellite system sometime, but not tomorrow. Incidentally, I'm in my 60's and watch TV selectively (NASCAR and Some Prime Time), and have my 42" EDTV sold if I want to sell it. Are there any serious advantages to keeping the 50" HDTV, or to returning it and keeping the 1-year old 42" EDTV? The 50" size I like, but I don't think it's enough to spend the money on. Any inputs, more facts?

TIA! -Vern- :confused:

pajer

10-09-06, 02:39 PM

well, i have had my zenith since jan. 16th and last wednesday sparks flew and loud popping noises in the rear of the set just above the component and rca jacks area. any idea what board or part might of got fried? i called zenith service and they said they would call back in 3-5 days with a scheduler, there is no zenith service center around here that offers in home repair. 3-5 days just to get to the scheduling part is not very good customer service and i have a feeling it will be doownhill from here, any thoughts? pajer

Chilli_Dog

10-09-06, 05:52 PM

Finally got tired of the flashing issue and called Zenith today. I explained the problem to the CSR and have a tech coming out Wednesday...
How'd it go, JellyBellyMD? Is there a fix for the flashing issue?

bpilati

10-10-06, 10:00 AM

I spent a half hour typing in a post to have it lost because of some stupid login quirk!!!!!
Here it is again to the best of my recollection. GRRRRRRRR!!!!! Man I'm pissed. Sorry. :D

My father has owned the Z50PX2D TV since Dec 05. He has Direct TV service. His TV warranty expires in Dec 06. He recently upgraded his Direct TV service to receive HD signal so they installed new boxes and a new dish to the latest models. He also owns a 37" Visio HDTV. The Zenith gets no picture or sound using the HDMI cable, however the Visio does. Cables have been swapped and nothing is wrong with them. Even the Direct TV technician tried his HDMI cable with identical results. His Zenith is currently functioning using the color RGB component cable for picture and standard RCA cable for audio. He does not have a Dolby sound system attached. The HDMI connector on the TV is for video only with a digital optical output connector to feed sound to your Dolby system if present. He does not care about the HD sound. He is concerned about the HD picture. BTW, he purchased the TV and HDMI cable from Circuit City who have been of no help whatsoever and will not replace the TV. They are also quite incompetent on the subject HD beyond what it says on the display.

Now he has been going round and round with the Zenith National Response Center and several Zenith authorized service providers in his area (Richmond, VA). The Response Center has not provided much help yet. He has dealt with two service providers. One sent a technician out to look at the TV. Upon inspecting the TV he noted that picture and sound exists, and asked my father what more did he want. *sigh* My father explained that without the above mentioned cables no picture or sound would exist using only the HDMI cable. The technician became offended for some reason, claiming my father was interfering with his work. My father is almost 80 years old, and has unusually high standards (like expecting the technician to know what he's doing or at least know more than him). Anyway the technician had a personality attack and left without doing much of anything. My father called the service provider who was aware of the personality attack his technician developed. My father told the manager to never send that technician to his house again. Moving on, the next service provider stated he did not want to come out that far because he would not get reimbursed for mileage over 25 miles. So what we have here is top-notch service from Zenith auithorized service. :eek: Technical incompentence and poor customer service abound in droves. These technicians also seem incompetent on how to handle a large plasma TV, wanting to put it in the back of a van without the required packing and stabilizing procedure. For those that don't know, plasma TVs cannot be laid flat, nor can they be jossled around in an old van. He paid $3800 and will not allow some halfwit cowboy to take this TV out of his house. BTW, the Response Center told my father that the satellite receiver must be compatible with the Zenith TV. His receiver is the same one that Direct TV uses all over the country, so I don't know what Zenith is talking about.

I just sent an email to the customer service link on the Zenith website, and hope to get a satisfactory response soon (but I'm not holding my breath). My father is planning to call the Zenith Factory Service Centers list on the Zenith Customer Service page.

Based on all this, I recommend THAT NO ONE PURCHASE A ZENITH HDTV IF OTHER VIABLE CHOICES EXIST.

bpilati

10-10-06, 10:02 AM

JellyBellyMD

10-13-06, 09:05 AM

How'd it go, JellyBellyMD? Is there a fix for the flashing issue?
Chilli_Dog

The date the Zenith CSR rep gave me was not available when I called the company that was scheduled to come out. Good thing they tell you to call and verify your appointment. I now have them scheduled to come out on the 20th. I'll post the results of that visit.

pajer

10-13-06, 10:33 AM

finally got a call from zenith service center, there are no service people in my area so they are going to start the process on doing a swap at the best buy where i purchased the tv, however best buy no longer carries the zenith plasma, so it looks like i will have a credit towards a new tv, any recommendations on which set to get 50" + size, thanks pajer

RBG

10-14-06, 12:20 AM

proteus69

10-17-06, 12:29 PM

I bought this great tv last week and my wife got rid of the box 2 days later. I just found out there is a $200 rebate, but I need a photo copy of the UPC. Could anyone email a copy of the UPC to me?! Heck, I'll throw $5 via PayPal to you for the trouble! Thanks in advance.

EDIT** Someone was nice enough to forward one to me. Many thanks!!!!!

proteus69

10-17-06, 11:15 PM

My Panasonic 50LC13 just popped a bulb. Since I can't currently check how many hours I have on it (the screen being a might dark), I'd guess less than 4000. Anyhow the picture is great except for the low-light scenes. Popped back to this forum and read the good stuff on the new Panasonic 50 inch plasmas. Went to BB and immediately was drawn to the less costly Z50PX2d... and that's what I ordered. Naturally there is no way to apple/apple it but the combination of picture quality and price got me. And even if the blacks aren't as good as the Panny, I'm betting that they will be way better than my now sold 50LAC13.

And out of fear, I went for the extended warranty (one year factory and three added on). I'm looking forward to setting the Zenith up on Saturday and want to thank everyone for all those informative posts.

Byron

Just got it last week and at [EDIT], it was the deal of the century for a 50". While at Circuit City, this TV was right next to an LG, Panny, Sony, Phillips and two ther brands. Now, I can't deny the Sony and Panny looked a little better, but not with the price! I have the XBOX 360 and the games and movies (upconverted to 1080i) look great! the blacks can be washed out a little, but not that bad after tweaking the video settings!

All in all, a great TV. I too got the 4 year warranty (always cover a plasma with a warranty, parts and labor are a hugh expense!!!).

I'd give it a 8.9/10.

JellyBellyMD

10-20-06, 07:37 PM

Chilli_Dog

The date the Zenith CSR rep gave me was not available when I called the company that was scheduled to come out. Good thing they tell you to call and verify your appointment. I now have them scheduled to come out on the 20th. I'll post the results of that visit.

Well, the tech showed up today and got to see the infamous flashing in person. TV was hauled off to the repair shop with a promised 5 - 10 business day turn-around.

elfedz

10-20-06, 09:06 PM

mlandau

10-20-06, 11:18 PM

I bought mine last November or December. No problems so far.

jaypb

10-21-06, 08:00 AM

Pajer

As RBG mentioned you may want to look at somethign else. I bought my Zenith Z50PX2D on January of this year, three weeks ago loud popping noise after the unit was on for like 15 minutes. I also bought the extended service agreement, BB, I contacted Zenith first and they already knew about the popping issue. They wanted to schedule th 3 to 5 day someone will contact me, but i took down reference number and local service dealer. Needless to say i contacted the extended service plan with BB, great service may i add. Tech came next day, i was at work, the wife stated that the tech made some calls and some parts were ordered. two weeks later, the parts came in and tech came to service. he ordered 2 different boards, i assume his second level service decided what to order. well, needless to say, neither one or both boards corrected the problem. TV has been labeled junk and i will have to return. As already mentioned in the posts, BB does not carry Zenith any more, they do carry LG, but i am afraid it may be the same thing as the Zenith Z50PX2D was and LG with Zenith tags. I do have some additonal offers and may move up to the Panny and maybe even the Samsung, but i may consider the LG which it does come with 2 years warranty.

I would like to know how some of the original posters here are doing with there unit, like

MFAN, JoeQ, JayPB

I would like to know how many of the Popping Issues have there been.

El Fedz

My Z is doing going strong {as he knocks on wood}-no problems since I got it in December. I haven't had flashing issues.....if only because I don't utilize ANY input but the HDTIVO anymore. I *think* I've watched a DVD on this set maybe 2...3 times since I hooked up the DVD player and I haven't used the internal tuner since my original musing about how switching from OTA to HDMI was causing the flashing on my set.

Having said that, I'm elated with the performance of this set. 2 of my friends bought this set after seeing mine. I also had it professionally calibrated by Eliab back in February or so.

No problems. So far so good... :cool:

Lcars

10-31-06, 02:28 PM

pajer,
Buy anything but a zenith. Hi all, its my first post and unfortunately not a good one. I bought my 50" zenith on 12/03/05. Last Sunday my plasma made the same loud pop and smelled like burnt plastic. The picture went out and a minute later so did the sound. I waited about an hour and tried to turn it on. The power light went from green to red and shut itself off. Called Zenith CSR and they gave me the number to a local repair shop. I called them on Monday and they came and picked up on Thursday. They told me it will be about 10 working days and it is probably a board. When my tv comes back I will post what board they replaced and what they think it would have cost if it was out of warranty. I did a search on Yahoo and there were two other people who discribed the same problem to a tee. I can't believe for 3k you get a tv that lasts 10 monthes! Who cares about 60,000 hours when the rest of the tv is on fire! Anyway I hope everyone else gets many years of enjoyment with their plasmas. Like I said I will post the outcome in a couple of weeks.

I have to agree, DO NOT BUY the Zenith.
I purchased mine in January and 2 months ago it also popped and died. I have been trying to get it fixed ever since. Zenith has been no help. They claim to have in house repair but the service center that Zenith sent me to could not pick it up for a couple of months. So, I took it down to them. It sat there for two weeks till I received a call telling me to come pick it up. It seems the service center is no longer repairing Zenith. They told me that Zenith is not paying for the warranty repairs anymore so they refuse to work on them. I called Zenith and they seemed surprised at this. They tell me they will take care of it. A couple days later I get a call from the new service center. They tell me they will not pick it up from the other service center but I can bring it to them. Mind you, the tv is big, heavy, and hard to keep moving around. I call Zenith and they tell me that I have to pick it up from the first service center and bring it home where the second service center will come and pick it up.
I have since replaced the tv with another Panasonic.

Joe Q

11-01-06, 06:38 PM

Pajer

I would like to know how some of the original posters here are doing with there unit, like

MFAN, JoeQ, JayPB

I would like to know how many of the Popping Issues have there been.

El Fedz

I bought mine November a year ago and have had no problems.
The Ravens win on Sunday which now makes them 5 and 2 looked awesome in High Def on this TV:)

When I bought the TV from CC, I did not take out the extended warranty but after reading all the problems, I am thinking about it.

Good timing too because CC sent me a letter a few days ago with a form that lets me get 1,2 or 3 year warranty.
I am still on the fence though.

Joe

Lcars

11-02-06, 12:50 AM

Good timing too because CC sent me a letter a few days ago with a form that lets me get 1,2 or 3 year warranty.
I am still on the fence though.

Joe
Buy the warranty! With the warranty CC will either have it fixed or replace it. Without the extended warranty you have to use the factory warranty and CC will do nothing to help. The factory warranty promises a lot but fall on its face when you try to have the fix it.

elfedz

11-04-06, 08:33 AM

I bought mine November a year ago and have had no problems.
The Ravens win on Sunday which now makes them 5 and 2 looked awesome in High Def on this TV:)

When I bought the TV from CC, I did not take out the extended warranty but after reading all the problems, I am thinking about it.

Good timing too because CC sent me a letter a few days ago with a form that lets me get 1,2 or 3 year warranty.
I am still on the fence though.

Joe

Hello Group, JoeQ and JayPB thanks for the reply

I will have to agree with LCARS, buy the warranty, i have only read nightmares and issues dealing with customer service departments from most manufacturers. With the extended warranty, you deal with the store you purchasse and BB, CC and other major chains are much easier to deal with. They come to the house, as they did with my case and my Zenith, gone now and more on this in the next paragraph, but it is worth the extra few hundred bucks, it was to me.

Now, regarding my Zenith being gone now. Again and example of BB extended warranty, once my Zenith popped, i call Zenith and they wanted me to go thru the same hasle others have gone like LCARS. The unit was only 10 months old, purchased in January. Same thing, they will either call me withing 5 days or they would give me a number of the local service depot. When she did the search, only one came up withing 25 miles to my zip code. I asked the name, thankfully i knew the place and have had some experience years ago with them. Needless to say, i said thanks but no thanks and asked for other options, she found another zenith authorize service depot, around 50 miles away my zip code, again, thanks but no thanks. I just had dumped the box three weeks earlier and i was not going to drive this big thing all around the sorounding counties. I said thank you, ask for a reference number and told her i would call back. I called BB service and a tech was out the next morning. They stayed in touch with all thru the process of diags, parts ordering and schedule for parts install. Again, in home service no need to take anywhere. Which with my wife at home it is a great thing to have as i don't have to miss work. Within 10 days from the original service call the unit was tagged "dead" and ready for return and disposal. Option, take back to store and get either the same as replacement if in stock or equal technology exchange. As most of us know, this model is no longer available, i think CC just got rid of all of theirs a few week ago for around 2 grand. They accepted the dead Zenith with no questions ask and started looking for a replacement. After two days of looking in multiple stores to compare settings and how different models looked i norrowed it down to three models. Panasonic, Pioneer and Samsung. Needless to say, i took the wife and kids with me and we all agreed on the Samsun HP-S5053. After the headache of having to take the Zenith back in and poor help from Zenith, they granted me an even exchange for the Zenith, which i bought at a great price after price match and zenith rebate. around what CC was giving the Z's a few weeks ago. I can tell you enough on how good the Sammy looks in comparison to all other set in the price range, maybe the only exception and close competion would be the Pioneer PDP 50, but not worth the extra 15 hundred or so difference just for the name plate. Unfortunetely, the Sammy has a buzzing problem with models made in a date range in Mexico. Again, BB great service, took the first buzzing Sammy back and exchanged with no problem, i could have had them bring one home, but the buzzing was to loud to wait 3 to 5 days as i was going out of town did not want to leave the family with the buzzer. The second set, had them open in store, again, really nice people did so. This one has a slight buzz but not as bad as the first one. They agreed and I will be scheduling an in home replacement for the third set to be "delivered to my house". Dollar for dollar, Sammy best bang for the buck.

sorry for the big, long post, but this group has been of great help to me in the past and i wanted to pass along.

Please feel free to ask any questions...

Here is the thread for the sammy, good reading http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=667231&page=1&pp=30

el fedz

Joe Q

11-04-06, 09:22 AM

Hello Group, JoeQ and JayPB thanks for the reply

I will have to agree with LCARS, buy the warranty.

:
:
:

sorry for the big, long post, but this group has been of great help to me in the past and i wanted to pass along.

Please feel free to ask any questions...

el fedz

No need to apologize - that is very useful information which you provided.

I have rarely bought extended warranties because most of the pro consumer reports/magazines say that those are a big racket and is how companies make real money on a sale.

With that said, I can see buying one on a case by case basis.

Example,a DLP TV is guaranteed to need a new $200 bulb in 2 years

Example, buy a used 2 year old car with an automatic transmission and (in my experience) you are guaranteed to needing a $1000 repair job on the Automatic transmission.

Example, I was offered a 3 year warranty (beyond the standard 1 year) on my new 150 HP Yamaha Outboard but boat motors don't start having problems until the 5th year so I passed on that.

Ignoring the fact that 50" is not available in LCD's, I bought a Plasma over an LCD TV since it has nothing that you need to worry about having to replace, like the BULB.
So a Plasma should be the same as the classic CRT tv's where you hear plenty of stories about how they are 15 years old and still going strong.

However, I guess this is one of those case's to get the warranty if so many people are reporting so many problems.

The issue is not the money but rather my plans.

I call it the 'good enough' plan:
Don't spend a fortune on a big screen flat panel TV today because the best they can do is 720P.
Instead, buy an affordable one that has a good enough picture quality.
When 50"/55" 1080P Flat Panel TV's become available and at rational price's, get a high quality model and plan on keeping it for a LONG time.

I was only going to keep this Zenith for 2 years and hopefully by November of 2007, 50" 1080P Plasma's will be affordable and that would be my last HDTV purchase for many,many years.

Joe

jaymzh

11-04-06, 04:27 PM

JellyBellyMD

11-05-06, 06:50 AM

Hey folks,

I thought I'd post a review. I've now had this set for 10 months and I'm thrilled with it. I kept contrast and brightness low for the first 200 hours based on various guides I read that said this will ensure a longer life and prevent the classic Plasma burn in.

Speaking of burn-in, this isn't a problem, but you'll think it is when you first get the set. When the signal to the set goes away (i.e. you turn your DVD player off, or your cable box off), the last image definitely leaves what *appears* to be a burn in. But it's not. As soon as another picture appears on the screen, that shadow is gone, never to be seen again.

The set performs exceptionally well at bright whites and dark blacks. The only touble I've had is with very fast moving bright whites (i.e. watching skiing sometimes you'll see a few random color specs in the snow)... but this is very rare even when watching such things.

The fact that the TV uses grey bars on the left and right instead of black when watching 4:3 programming takes a bit to get used to. At first I didn't like it, but now I actually prefer it. I suspect ultimately, this is less likely to cause burn in.

My only complaint is that I wish it had a few more inputs. Currently it has enough for all my stuff - but if I ever want a 2nd HDMI device, I need to them buy a switcher. Currently my Cable is HDMI, my DVD is component, my VCR is composite, and my Amp's OSD is SVideo. I have a component and a VGA input left.

Exceptional quality television for a great price!

Exceptional quality television for a great price????

I would say good picture for a good price if you like to gamble and can accept numerous nuances.

The quality is questionable. I am scheduled to get mine back next week after three weeks at the repair shop to fix the flashing issue. This "quality" feature has been reported by numerous individuals. I think the flashing issue would be reported by more individuals if they used the OTA tuner.

Now there appears to be an issue with it "popping" and dying. I wonder how many hours were on these sets? Sounds like another "quality" issue to look forward to in the future.

Folks are seriously considering buying the extended warranty. This doesn't bode well for this set's "quality" aspect.

There are many quirks regarding channel programming on this set.

I have to mute the set due to out of sync audio between the set and a/v receiver. This was also reported by individuals who tried to use the set as a center channel.

I'm not too proud to say my baby is ugly!

HDGreg

11-05-06, 03:46 PM

FYI, CompUSA has this set on sale this week. Who would buy this set again?

Lcars

11-06-06, 01:18 AM

FYI, CompUSA has this set on sale this week. Who would buy this set again?

Never again!

Now there appears to be an issue with it "popping" and dying. I wonder how many hours were on these sets? Sounds like another "quality" issue to look forward to in the future.

Mine was on about 18 hours a day so it did have a bit of time on it.

Joe Q

11-06-06, 10:34 AM

FYI, CompUSA has this set on sale this week. Who would buy this set again?

CC has a 50" Polaroid and a 50" Vizio for the same price as the Zenith from Compusa.
That tells me that there are probably a lot of choices for 50" Plasma's at that same price point. That also assumes that one buys a warranty for these.

I would buy the Zenith again IF it's PQ was better than other model's that cost the same.

Considering that we all did some serious comparing to higher end sets and thought that the Zenmith was really,really close, I suspect that this LG in disguise would still have the best Picture.

pocketmike

11-06-06, 01:07 PM

I apologize if this issue has already been discussed. I did a quick scan of this thread and didn't see it, so here goes:

I bought my Zenith in late May '06 and set it up in mid-July (I was finishing the basement at the time). Not being up on plasma technology, I watched the TV at it's factory settings for about 2 weeks before discovering the good old "break-in" period guidelines. I dropped all of the contrast, brightness, etc. settings to appropriate levels and have had no sign of burn-in. However, since dropping those settings I have noticed vertical lines on the screen. They're about an inch wide and are mostly in the middle of screen, spanning about 6 to 7 inches in both directions and run from the top to the bottom. They're also on the right side of screen, maybe about 4 inches wide, but not the left. I can only see them when the screen is white or gray. In a full screen with lots of color you don't notice it all. They're there when I use the HDMI input and the component input, so it's not my satellite feed. My wife didn't notice it all until I pointed it out.

Any ideas on what this could be? Should I try bumping a setting back up to see if it makes any difference? Other than this, I love the TV and so far have no complaints.

Any input is appreciated.

mike.

KSLABY

11-06-06, 03:53 PM

proteus69

11-06-06, 04:28 PM

Can anyone tell me if they have thier xbox 360 connected to the Z50PX2D using the VGA cable (Since the 360 can only upconvert DVD through the VGA, not component)?

I tried but could not get the 360 to work correctly except for 720p (1080i did not work - invalid signal).

Any help greatly appreciated!!!!!!

jaymzh

11-07-06, 03:14 AM

Exceptional quality television for a great price????

I would say good picture for a good price if you like to gamble and can accept numerous nuances.

The quality is questionable. I am scheduled to get mine back next week after three weeks at the repair shop to fix the flashing issue. This "quality" feature has been reported by numerous individuals. I think the flashing issue would be reported by more individuals if they used the OTA tuner.

Now there appears to be an issue with it "popping" and dying. I wonder how many hours were on these sets? Sounds like another "quality" issue to look forward to in the future.

Folks are seriously considering buying the extended warranty. This doesn't bode well for this set's "quality" aspect.

There are many quirks regarding channel programming on this set.

I have to mute the set due to out of sync audio between the set and a/v receiver. This was also reported by individuals who tried to use the set as a center channel.

I'm not too proud to say my baby is ugly!

Sorry to hear you had so many issues. I purchased mine in January and have yet to have any issues. When I purchased mine it was relatively new, but there were reviews out there and no one had any bad experiences to report. Perhaps that's changed since I purchased it.

Plasma is notoriously fragile - do you have kids or pets that could bump into it? Mine is fairly well gaurded from such things - perhaps that's part of it?

As for the picture quality, I don't work with video professionally, but I'm fairly picky, and I find the picture quality better than all of my friends' DLPs (everyone I know has DLPs).

I also purchased the extended warantee knowing well that plasmas are fragile.

- Phil

RBG

11-11-06, 04:23 PM

So far, my 10 month old Z50PX2D, has been at an authorized Zenith repair shop called VTR for over 30 days. VTR has been jerking me around saying the power supply has been on order since 10/20 but they cannot give me a part number or an order number with Zenith. Zenith is giving me the runaround saying they do not show any power supplies on order for my TV from VTR. Zenith has told me their computers have been down and they have been having problems with their phones and have not been able to call VTR. No one seems to know what is going on with my set and I doubt they even ordered any parts to fix it. I am getting very frustrated.

Any suggestions on how to get Zenith to get involved, and tell VTR to fix the set?

I strongly recommend to everyone....DO NOT BUY A ZENITH....They are glad to take your $3,000 but if there is a problem they will not be there for you.

Thanks for letting me vent.

jaymzh

11-11-06, 05:21 PM

RBG:
Sounds like your vendor is the problem. Electronics can have problems, and a power supply is a pretty small component to break (that's a lot better than the display). VTR sounds like they're not doing their job. You might have already done this, but what I would do would be to call VTR, get the person's name, ask for their manager. Get that person's name. Ask for their manager. Get their name. Explain to this person the situation, and how unacceptable it is - but do it nicely. At this point there should be no yelling needed. I've found that after going up 2 levels I tend to get someone who really doesn't want stuff getting so bad it escalates to them and they start kicking some ass. Feel free to threaten to report them to the Better Business Bureau as well. Make sure you get the name of everyone you speak to, and write down what date/time you spoke to them, and what they said they'd do (i.e. "Spoke to John Forgel, regional manager, at 11/17, 6:15pm, said he would call me within an hour to give me an exact date and time my TV will be returned to me").

At this point, it's not in Zenith's hands. You didn't buy from them, they don't have the TV in their possession.

Hope that helps,
- Phil

JellyBellyMD

11-13-06, 07:28 PM

Got my TV back Friday. They replaced the tuner board and the flashing issue seems to be gone.

Eagles Dare

11-17-06, 04:08 PM

Sorry to see some people having problems with the set. I've had mine since Jan. and it's been flawless. Kid plays more Xbox 360 on it than I'd like too.

I'd buy another in a heartbeat.

jaypb

11-17-06, 05:20 PM

Sorry to see some people having problems with the set. I've had mine since Jan. and it's been flawless. Kid plays more Xbox 360 on it than I'd like too.

I'd buy another in a heartbeat.

Count me in the "Knock on wood....so far so good" category..... :D

Got mine right before Xmas last year....had the flashing issue....but stopped cycling through inputs....so I haven't seen that in months.... :p

AFA the warranty goes...didn't buy it....and I still get offers in the mail from CC to "get" the extended warranty because the 1 year anniversary of my purchase is coming up. I wish I remembered how much it was off the top of my head....but I *think* 1 year of additional coverage was like 349 for this plasma....and 3 years was like 800 or 900 bucks!!!! I couldn't see justifying paying that much money for the simple reason that: I flip my TV's! I turn em over and buy new ones every 2-3 years. I don't LIKE to admit that....but I'm an "early adopter"....HDTV enthusiast...who buys new stuff when it comes out...or when I feel like I NEED or WANT something new! And the cost of this technology just keeps coming down year after year.....

The only TV I bought the EW on was my FIRST HDTV (January 2003 a 50" Toshiba RPTV)....which ironically I STILL have! But, I think the reasoning behind why I STILL have the TV....is that it still works! And when I bought the EW it was affordable...maybe 4 years additional coverage for like $399 or so?? And I have yet to use the warranty on that TV...but, it's a hulking, huge monster....and I don't want to replace it till it dies...because lord knows I don't want to have to move that 200 lb beast up the steps and out of the house!

This is how I handle my HDTV purchases...and most of you probably don't do the same. But, for me, this works (so far at least....)...just offering another POV!

Joe Q

11-25-06, 06:16 PM

Is anyone using an HDMI capable receiver with this TV?

I just bought a Denon AVR-887 Receiver which has 2 HDMI inputs.

I can NOT get any picture to display on this TV.

I have the HDMI from my Toshiba A1 and my HDTIVO connected to the Denon.

On either source, the Zenith says "no signal" .

I am trying to figure out whether the cuplrit is my Zenith TV or the new Denon Receiver.

What is wierd is that if I disconnect the cable from the receiver, the Toshiba stops playing and says "HDMI disconnected".
So even though I get NO picture or sound, there is some level of connectivety going on - if that makes sense.

Thanks

benwilard

11-25-06, 10:15 PM

I just had my TV looked at again. After the first fix (loud crack or pop, and an extremely dark picture) I noticed the picture had a pink tone to it when I was caibrating the picture with AVIA. The pink would only show itself on certain contrast settings - 35 thru 65 if I remember. ANyway. the repairman replaced two boards at the recommendation of Zenith, and that didn't fix it. He then called Zenith while he was here during the second visit and the Zenith tech had him change a voltage setting to get rid of the pink tone. Sad to see them (Zenith) waste boards like that, when its a simple setting to change.
Something a little embarassing happened afterward too. After the repairman left I noticed a "crack" in the lower righthand corner. I frantically called the service center and got ahold of the repairman and had him return. I was all ready for him to deny breaking the plasma. Once he got here, he looked at it and calmly let me know it was just something between the outer glass and the plasma glass, like a hair or something. So we just took it off the wall again and gently tapped the plasma on the carpet and it then fell back down out of site. The static electric charge must have allowd it to hang there, looking like a crack. We dropped back down to DEFCON 1 after that. I even gave him a cookie my wife had just made and a Wired drink.
I've had a couple problems with our unit, and I haven't bought the extended warranty (yet) either. I'm not sure if I'll get it, assuming Circuit City offers it to me before the year warranty is over- February 07. The price has gone down a grand since I bought it. If I have any further problems with the TV, maybe I'd just get a bigger one. Overall, I'm happy with our plasma and the service provided by Zenith. Oh, I too have the flashing. I just turn the TV off then back on if I've cycled thru the TV/video inputs. That gets rid of it for me.

Chilli_Dog

11-25-06, 10:57 PM

Is anyone using an HDMI capable receiver with this TV?

I just bought a Denon AVR-887 Receiver which has 2 HDMI inputs.

I can NOT get any picture to display on this TV.

I have the HDMI from my Toshiba A1 and my HDTIVO connected to the Denon.

On either source, the Zenith says "no signal" .

I am trying to figure out whether the cuplrit is my Zenith TV or the new Denon Receiver.
ThanksBy chance, are your devices trying to send 480i through the HDMI connection? If I remember correctly, only 480p through 1080i are supported. Just a thought...

eddiwill

11-26-06, 07:59 AM

Joe Q

11-26-06, 08:43 AM

Sorry to hear about your problem with the Denon and this set, Joe.

I don't have anything new to offer, except to echo what Chili Dog said; I'm pretty sure I read that as well. Please keep us posted on it. I, for one, am very interested as I am looking at a Pioneer Elite with similiar HDMI connectivity and the ability for the two to "play nice" is very much a concern!

Good luck!

I will keep you all posted because if the Zenith turns out to have an HDMI incompatability, that would be a bad thing.

A bit more info:
I have 2 HDMI sources. A Directv HDTIVO and the Toshiba A1 HDDVD player.
I have no trouble if I directly connect them to the TV.
I do have a 4 input HDMI switch.

Both Sources are normally set to 1080i but I did try 480P and 720P as well.

I am sure I have the Denon set up properly.
If you push the status button on the front of the Denon it displays a lot of info (on it's front panel display) about what that particular input is setup to.

On my 2 HDMI sources , it shows HDMI1 and HDMI2 for both audio and video as well as showing the capability of the connected Monitor(480P,1080i,720P,etc.).
So I know the inpuits are setup correct and the Denon "sees" the TV.

In spite of all that, all I get is that dreaded "NO SIGNAL" message and eventually ther TV turns itself off

It makes me wonder if the HDMI signal coming from the Denon has some timing that the TV does not like.
The Denon is HDMI version 1.1 and I have no clue what version the Zenith. It could be version 1.0 for all I know.

Any other thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

I really do not feel like packing this thing all back up and returning it.
Plus it has all the features I want/need which is why I replaced my 8 year old Yamaha DSP-A1 (which I paid $2200 for) with this $700 Receiver.

Joe Q

11-26-06, 10:25 AM

I will keep you all posted because if the Zenith turns out to have an HDMI incompatability, that would be a bad thing.
.

I am 100% certain that I have this thing hooked up correctly.

I get sound out of the HDMI but NO picture on the Zenith.

I even disconnected the Zenith and plugged my DVI LCD PC monitor into the Denon(with a HDMI/DVI adaptor).

My LCD monitor can not display any of the HDTV standards, it will show sync (but no picture) if you set the source to 480P.

If you set the source to 720P or 1080i, the LCD monitor says "Invalid Signal" and the indicator light turns amber.
Set the source to 480P and while you get no picture on teh LCD, you do get a green indicator and just a blank screen.

So with the LCD connected to the Denon, I switched the resolution between 480P/720P and 1080i on my Toshiba A1 and the LCD monitor indicated sync on 480P. Of course no picture.

So I KNOW that I have this connected and setup properly.

Joe Q

11-26-06, 12:53 PM

I am 100% certain that I have this thing hooked up correctly.

I get sound out of the HDMI but NO picture on the Zenith with the AVR-887.
.

I guess we will never know about the AVR-887 but if I were a betting person, I would say I got a bad unit.

I took it back to CC and explained that either the unit was defective or there was an incompatable timing on HDMI with the Zenith.

They said to take another AVR-887 home and try it.
There were no AVR-887's to be had at the 5 stores closest to me.

So I bought the Denon AVR-987. Took all of 2 minutes to check it once I got it home.

The AVR-987 works PERFECTLY with HDMI to the Zenith.

Now to finish hooking all this stuff back up.

90SPGred

11-26-06, 06:20 PM

JoeQ, Glad it's fixed, and pleased to know your Zenith Plasma HDMI was NOT the culprit!

dane2525

11-26-06, 09:48 PM

Well darn! It happened again. Watching the TV and all of a sudden POP!!! The picture went out for the second time. Had it fixed last July/August for same problem. They replaced a circuit card. Took them almost a month to get the part and fix it. My warranty runs out tomorrow the 27th. Called Zenith tonight and reported it. I guess I'm lucky it did not happen a day later. They said they would take care of it. Not real sure about the quality of this plasma. When it works it's great in every way. If you didn't get the extended warranty on this thing yet, like me, you might reconsider. I plan on getting something else.

Angelo M

11-27-06, 06:23 PM

[QUOTE=regrossman]Wow, with the rebate and the price at Circuit City after 10% coupon, this thing is the price of most 42" models, yikes!

Anyone out there buy the 50 inch zenith on sale at Circuit Cty and use the $200.00 rebate? My father in law did, and today got a letter in the mail that his rebate was being denied, the claim in the letter was that the rebate was given as part of the sale price at Circuit City......... does this sound right? Has this happened to anyone else? I think he paid $1899.00 for the new in box set. The rebate was through Zenith and not Circuit City.

90SPGred

11-27-06, 06:54 PM

Angelo M, Yes, I bought from Circuit City. The Zenith $200 rebate did in fact state that purchases from Circuit city and a couple other retailers were excluded from the mail in offer. Go to Zenith Site, Special Offers, the Z50 Rebate is gone, but the ZHX-313 rebate has similar text. It's a valid exclusion.

Other similar rebate (http://www.zenith.com/index.asp?url=./sub_promo/index.asp)

Angelo M

11-28-06, 05:45 PM

90SPGred,

Thanks for the info.........I will pass it along.

jaypb

12-09-06, 09:23 AM

JohninTonawanda

12-11-06, 04:30 PM

My wife just called. Our TV went POP and will not turn on.
Warranty expires Dec 26th. This really s&cks!. I was looking forward to taking time off xmas week and watching some dvd's with the family. Hope they can fix it quick.
Just an FYI for those who have NOT purchased the warranty from CC and, like me, are nearing the end of the manufactureres warranty. Sounds like this tv has a history of power supply failures.
I guess I'm lucky, had this happened 2 weeks from now I would be SOL

Well darn! It happened again. Watching the TV and all of a sudden POP!!! The picture went out for the second time. Had it fixed last July/August for same problem. They replaced a circuit card. Took them almost a month to get the part and fix it. My warranty runs out tomorrow the 27th. Called Zenith tonight and reported it. I guess I'm lucky it did not happen a day later. They said they would take care of it. Not real sure about the quality of this plasma. When it works it's great in every way. If you didn't get the extended warranty on this thing yet, like me, you might reconsider. I plan on getting something else.

JellyBellyMD

12-12-06, 08:45 PM

The Fly

12-14-06, 07:22 PM

Bought my Zenith 50" in December of last year and everything was great. Until a month ago when it went POP... I have had the LG repair guy out to my house 2 times to replace some boards with no luck. Then they tell me they need to order 2 additional boards and that will surely fix the problem. Well, after waiting an entire month and calling Zenith/LG about 10 times and bitching they have agreed to send me an authorization for a new unit at BB. Since BB doesn't sell this TV anymore I will probably get the Panny. I really liked the way the Zenith looked but after so many people having the POP thing and the HORRIBLE customer Service from LG/Zenith I will never again buy their products... BEWARE, buy the extended warranty if you still can. I have had a real headache dealing with Manuf warranty

JohninTonawanda

12-19-06, 04:23 PM

Repair guy says part needed is on back order. Who knows how long that could take.
I went out and bought a 42 in Panny figuring we can move it to the bedroom after the zenith comes back. I set it up in the living room and everyone (wife and 2 kids) says the picture is better than the 50 in zenith. I have not had a chance to look at it myself objectively but thought that theirs was an intersting observation.
The new panny is still on torchlight mode, and perhaps I never properly adjusted the zenith. Has anyone spent some time with the zenith trying to find the best parameters for the user selectable brightness, contrast,.....?
Except for the first few pages of this topic, i dont recall seeign much in the way of discussion about setting the zenith up/calibrating it.

My wife just called. Our TV went POP and will not turn on.
Warranty expires Dec 26th. This really s&cks!. I was looking forward to taking time off xmas week and watching some dvd's with the family. Hope they can fix it quick.
Just an FYI for those who have NOT purchased the warranty from CC and, like me, are nearing the end of the manufactureres warranty. Sounds like this tv has a history of power supply failures.
I guess I'm lucky, had this happened 2 weeks from now I would be SOL

90SPGred

12-20-06, 05:03 PM

JohninToanwanda said:
"Repair guy says part needed is on back order. Who knows how long that could take.
I went out and bought a 42 in Panny figuring we can move it to the bedroom after the zenith comes back. I set it up in the living room and everyone (wife and 2 kids) says the picture is better than the 50 in zenith. I have not had a chance to look at it myself objectively but thought that theirs was an intersting observation.
The new panny is still on torchlight mode, and perhaps I never properly adjusted the zenith. Has anyone spent some time with the zenith trying to find the best parameters for the user selectable brightness, contrast,.....?
Except for the first few pages of this topic, i dont recall seeign much in the way of discussion about setting the zenith up/calibrating it."

I got the Z50 HDTV to replace a fine Z42 EDTV. But the EDTV got better PQ on non-HD signals, and just as good on HD signals. I set them both up side by side, with same inputs to compare the PQ. I wanted to keep the 50" HDTV, so I used AVIA, but ONLY to adjust what is available in the normal Zenith menu (Contrast; Brightness; Color; Sharpness; Tint). Didn't enter the Service Menu at all, and the Z50 magically produces great PQ on all input signals.

JohninTonawanda

12-20-06, 05:13 PM

90SPGred

12-20-06, 08:32 PM

I wonder if you would mind sharing the settings you use with us?
Well, I think each unit will take differing settings, but I'm willing to share:

All inputs are at Color Temp - Medium and Low Power - On, using the VIDEO - EZ PICTURE - CUSTOM mode

Contrast Brightness Color Sharpness Tint

DTV (Antenna-HDTV) 60 50 40 51 -1 R
CADTV (Analog Cable) 60 55 50 60 -2 R
Video (VCR) 40 35 40 45 -1 R
Front Video (Tivo) 70 45 45 70 -2 R
Composite 1 Not used
Composite 2 Not used
RGB-PC Not used
HDMI/DVI (DVD Player) 90 50 50 50 0

Keep in mind that everyone's may (will) be different. Maybe you can try some out and let us know what works for you? And - I have NO idea how to make a readable chart on this! Oh, well.

-Vern-

The Fly

12-21-06, 07:51 PM

JohninTonawanda

12-22-06, 06:08 AM

Eagles Dare

12-22-06, 09:29 PM

I finally remembered to hold onto the CC Advantage Protection Plan offer I've been getting monthly regarding extending the 1 year warranty on my Zenith. For those who are interested in what the warranty costs (after the fact) directly from CC:

1 year: 286.19
2 years: 542.71
3 years: 776.97
4 years: 972.01
5 years: 1173.41

I don't recall what the warranty was at the store upfront when I bought the TV about a year ago....but obviously I didn't take the warranty. As I said in an earlier post, I have a penchant for "upgrading" my TV's after I've had them for 2 or 3 years....so I didn't feel the need to get a warranty.

Just an FYI for those considering NOT getting the extended warranty at POS and wondering how much it would be at the 1 year anniversary (as many appliance/electronics mfr's are known to do....)

I've been poking around LG/Zenith's "Academy" site and found something interesting. The warranty section of the Z50PX2D shows a 2 year duration. If you click over to the zenith service site, it shows the warranty on plasmas is 1 year for models before 4/2004 and 2 years for models after that date.

I know the card that came with my TV said 1 year, but could it be possible that we have a 2 year warranty on this set??

http://136.166.4.200/contents/Files/Displays/PDP/50/Z50PX2D.htm
(click on "Warranty")

They also have the Service Manual in .pdf there that you may want to grab. ;)

mlandau

12-23-06, 09:17 AM

Excellent find.

jaypb

12-23-06, 09:19 AM

I've been poking around LG/Zenith's "Academy" site and found something interesting. The warranty section of the Z50PX2D shows a 2 year duration. If you click over to the zenith service site, it shows the warranty on plasmas is 1 year for models before 4/2004 and 2 years for models after that date.

I know the card that came with my TV said 1 year, but could it be possible that we have a 2 year warranty on this set??

http://136.166.4.200/contents/Files/Displays/PDP/50/Z50PX2D.htm
(click on "Warranty")

They also have the Service Manual in .pdf there that you may want to grab. ;)

IIRC, the LG Big Brother version of this TV had the 2 year warranty. Could it be a typo....as I too remember filling out the 1 year specific warranty card/paperwork/online entry form for a 1 year warranty.

Finding out that there is indeed a 2 year warranty WOULD be a nice unexpected Xmas gift though...... :D

jaypb

12-23-06, 09:24 AM

I know the card that came with my TV said 1 year, but could it be possible that we have a 2 year warranty on this set??

http://136.166.4.200/contents/Files/Displays/PDP/50/Z50PX2D.htm
(click on "Warranty")

They also have the Service Manual in .pdf there that you may want to grab. ;)

Has anyone checked out the service bulletins over on the LH side? Anyone have any of those issues/symptoms with their 50"ers???

I see no "POPPING" service bulletin though..... :rolleyes:

Joe Q

12-23-06, 01:53 PM

I've been poking around LG/Zenith's "Academy" site and found something interesting. The warranty section of the Z50PX2D shows a 2 year duration. If you click over to the zenith service site, it shows the warranty on plasmas is 1 year for models before 4/2004 and 2 years for models after that date.

I know the card that came with my TV said 1 year, but could it be possible that we have a 2 year warranty on this set??

http://136.166.4.200/contents/Files/Displays/PDP/50/Z50PX2D.htm
(click on "Warranty")

They also have the Service Manual in .pdf there that you may want to grab. ;)

Good find on the service manuals and such BUT i think you are incorrect about the 2 year warranty.

If you read the warranty , it says "Your LG Plasma..." .
If you save the PDF file, the file name is:
50PX1D_Warranty.pdf

So that is the warranty for an LG 50PX1D NOT a Zenith Z50PX2D

darn!

EDIT: Any idea what the deal with the MDS program is?
Looks like it lets you upgrade the firmware.
Not that I want to risk toasting my TV but I am curious about this.

Eagles Dare

12-23-06, 05:05 PM

Good find on the service manuals and such BUT i think you are incorrect about the 2 year warranty.

If you read the warranty , it says "Your LG Plasma..." .
If you save the PDF file, the file name is:
50PX1D_Warranty.pdf

So that is the warranty for an LG 50PX1D NOT a Zenith Z50PX2D

darn!

Yeah, it's possible they have the LG warranty misposted in the Zenith section. However if you go to http://www.zenithservice.com , and follow the links to "Warranty", "Consumer Electronics", "Plasma TV/Monitor" it shows the warranty as 1 year for products dated before 4/2004 and 2 years for products dated after that. Strange.

I've got a doubled warranty for paying with my platinum VISA. It'd be great if that was 4 years instead of 2. :D

Edit: If you open the "Owners Manual" pdf the last few pages show the warranty as 1 year. I'm sure that's probably what we've got. They could clean up that zenithservice site so it doesn't get our hopes up though.

Chilli_Dog

12-23-06, 11:44 PM

I tried calling in for warranty service regarding the flashing issue -- the evening before my 1 year warranty expired. Because of "high call volumes", I could not get through. I left a callback number as instructed, but no one at Zenith ever called back. So, I called again two days later and explained the situation. They directed me to a local repair shop.

When the repair shop called, they said since I was now over the one year warranty mark, I had to have Zenith fax a special note to them stating they would cover all repairs. So, back to Zenith...

I called Zenith, who called the repair shop and informed them that "yes, the repairs would be covered because the Z50PX2D has a 2 year warranty" (even though it states in the manual that it's only one year). We didn't argue with them... :)

If it really IS covered for 2 years, then I'm very glad I didn't bite on the extended warranty from CC. I came thisclose to shelling out a couple hundred bucks for it...

Joe Q

12-24-06, 04:28 PM

I called Zenith, who called the repair shop and informed them that "yes, the repairs would be covered because the Z50PX2D has a 2 year warranty" (even though it states in the manual that it's only one year). We didn't argue with them... :)

If it really IS covered for 2 years, then I'm very glad I didn't bite on the extended warranty from CC. I came thisclose to shelling out a couple hundred bucks for it...

My Zenith turned one year old in November and I too got a letter from CC about getting a warranty but I decided not to(with fingers crossed)

I wonder how we can get some kind of official documentation from Zenith to verify the 2 warranty period.

Any ideas?

Perhaps when your TV is back in your hands, you could call the same person you got at Zenith and ask him?

Thanks

JohninTonawanda

12-27-06, 10:16 AM

[QUOTE=JohninTonawanda]Repair guy says part needed is on back order. Who knows how long that could take.[QUOTE]

Well, the reason they gave me a Return Authorization to BB was because I called and complined that it was taking too long (part was on back order). The RA gave me full credit for the price I purchased the Zenithat which was close to 3k... So, for only a little ove a hundred more I got the Pioneer 50" 5071 model.. I was able to get the 12% off of the sale price....

My point is that you shouldn't have to wait. A CSR told me that if you have to wait for a part more than 15 days you are entitled to get a Return authorization for the full amount. Right now the Zenith is sellind for almost half of what I paid for it so I gues I got lucky my went POP and now I have a sweet Pioneer.. Give them a call and complain to a manager

Just to follow up on this, I called Zenith customer service and asked if there was anything they could do to help as my part was on back order. He asked "when did you drop it off for service" I told him Dec 13. He did some math and said "call me back tomorrow (after 10 business days) and i can help. "I'm not supposed to tell you how I can help, but I can tomorrow". I am guessing that after 10 days of sitting in the shop they will issue a RA. That's pretty good customer service. I didnt have to complain, just explain. Also, I didnt need to speak w/ a manager. Of course, we'll see what happens tomorrow.

update: part came in so I was not offered a return option. BUT the program does exist and it is not publicized.

drjonesn

12-29-06, 05:30 PM

my 50 went pop after 9 months. American service guy replaced two boards inside and it fired right up. He told me it would have been about a 600 dollar repair if not under warranty. Has anyone had this happen more than once?

eddiwill

01-04-07, 11:44 AM

However if you go to http://www.zenithservice.com , and follow the links to "Warranty", "Consumer Electronics", "Plasma TV/Monitor" it shows the warranty as 1 year for products dated before 4/2004 and 2 years for products dated after that.

I went to that link but can't find anything remotely like the path you posted. Am I missing a link somewhere on the page?

Thanks!

JohninTonawanda

01-04-07, 12:05 PM

I went to that link but can't find anything remotely like the path you posted. Am I missing a link somewhere on the page?

Thanks!

First click on "owners Manuals"
then click on "warranty Information" on the left of the page
then "consumer electronics"
then "Plasma tv/monitor"

wow, 2 years, thats pretty good. (If my experience is common, we may all need it.)

jaypb

01-04-07, 01:15 PM

First click on "owners Manuals"
then click on "warranty Information" on the left of the page
then "consumer electronics"
then "Plasma tv/monitor"

wow, 2 years, thats pretty good. (If my experience is common, we may all need it.)

Has anyone been able to get a "yay" or a "nay" from a Zenith Rep regarding if this model is indeed covered with a 2 year warranty??

At the same time I bought my Zenith 50", a friend of mine bought the LG 50", and the major reason he did....was the 2 year warranty. So, I'm inclined to think that the website is just a misprint....but if someone gets word otherwise, I'm almost tempted to contact Zenith myself to get something in writing!!! :p

eddiwill

01-04-07, 01:16 PM

hmmm. I've tried that on both a Mac and a PC but nothing loads over in the right where a think a seperate frame should be loading. I'll try later from home, I guess.

I have had a few smallish issues with the Zetith, enough to make me reconsider and a few days ago, get a 1 year extension from CC. I guess I now have 2 more years (the "extra" year referenced here and the 1 "extended")?

Eagles Dare

01-04-07, 01:38 PM

I went to that link but can't find anything remotely like the path you posted. Am I missing a link somewhere on the page?

Thanks!

From the homepage (www.zenithservice.com):

1)Click on "Product Support" (just below and to the right of the red "Z")
2)Click on "Warranty Information" (the heading isn't clickable. At the end of the paragraph you'll see "click here")
3)Click "Consumer Electronics" (The middle of the 3 choices)
4)You'll need to scroll down the list 3-5 clicks til you see "Plasma TV/Monitor". Click that.
5)The table with the "1 year" on models before 4/2004 and "2 years" on models after that date will show.

I'm using Firefox 1.0.7 and it works fine.

90SPGred

01-04-07, 06:07 PM

Using Internet Explorer 6.0, the path works fine, also. And I noticed that is a Zenith site (not LG) so I hope it applies to my Zenith Z50.

jaypb

01-04-07, 08:06 PM

Using Internet Explorer 6.0, the path works fine, also. And I noticed that is a Zenith site (not LG) so I hope it applies to my Zenith Z50.

FWIW:

"Thank you for inquiring of Zenith Electronics. We appreciate your interest in this television. The warranty period for all Zenith televisions manufactured after April of 2004 have had their warranties extended from 1 year to 2 years. This is a change that has been made only within the last few months. For further information or troubleshooting, you may contact us at 800-243-0000 for LG Customer Service assistance. An agent will be glad to assist you. Thank you again for contacting LG Electronics. Neil E-mail Administrator Customer Interactive Center LGEAI"

This was in response to my question about whether or not this TV did indeed have a 2 year MFR warranty not a 1 year warranty.

So....I guess Christmas came in January for me ;)

JohninTonawanda

01-04-07, 08:38 PM

FWIW:

fwiw you ask?
jaypb, you made my day

mlandau

01-04-07, 09:19 PM

jaypb:

good work.

90SPGred

01-04-07, 11:08 PM

jaypb: Great follow-through!

Makes me wish I hadn't already bought a Warrantech (RepairMaster) 5-year extended warranty! But, still a great find!

jaypb

01-05-07, 07:41 AM

jaypb: Great follow-through!

Makes me wish I hadn't already bought a Warrantech (RepairMaster) 5-year extended warranty! But, still a great find!

I give the credit to Eagles Dare....if he hadn't come across the original website link and posted it the whole idea never would've festered inside me to contact Zenith :D

Eagles Dare

01-05-07, 07:51 AM

That's great news jay. All signs pointed to it, but it's awesome to have official confirmation!

I hope they put a .pdf of the 2 year warranty on the site somewhere. I've got a manilla folder with all the info in it for my doubled VISA platinum warranty protection. The warranty page of course is the original 1 year. I hope a phone call would take care of it if/when I ever need to use it, but I'd feel better if I had everything in writing.

JohninTonawanda

01-05-07, 07:55 AM

The extended warranty is making me wonder ... Why?
Maybe I have a biased view because my tv is in the shop but, is it possible there have been an extraordinary amount of problems with this tv? By extraordinary, I mean, suppose they assumed a failure rate of 1% in the first year, but they are observing 2%. Would that prompt them to step up to the plate and extend the warranty because of NOW KNOWN problems? They certainly arent using it as a marketing tool as it hasnt been publicized.
Along the same lines, their (secret) RMA policies (wait more than 10 days for a repair and you have a shot at getting full credit on the purchase) is also pretty liberal. Maybe Zenith/LG is standing by their product because they know there are issues and it is better to keep customers happy than get a bad name. (In that sense, perhaps it is a marketing tool)
I'm all for that.
Another line of evidence to support this theory is that I had to wait a while for the repair part I need because it is on BACKORDER. (I just missed the RMA deal because the needed part was shipped yesterday and I didnt follow through over the holidays). I wouldnt think that they have a "just in time" supply strategy for their repair parts, but since the part I needed was on backorder, it clues me in to the possibility that I am not alone with the tv's malfunction.
Just my wild hypothesis - but cant wait to get my set back.

newbeetle18t

01-10-07, 05:30 PM

Well my parents Plasma blew up today. They described it at a loud pop then picture went dim then an extremely loud pop. Suprising customer service picked up after only 2 rings. Service is scheduled for next Tues morning the 16th with their LG/Zenith tech. They did give me a couple local repair guys to call to see if they can come sooner. We are going to stick with the 16th.

I did mention that I heard the warranty may have been extended to 2 years and she said if purchased after April 2004 it is 2 years. I know this is old news.

Will let you all know how the repair goes.

jaypb

01-10-07, 05:38 PM

newbeetle18t

01-10-07, 09:35 PM

wizeass05

01-11-07, 10:49 AM

I am looking at the Zenith 50" plasma for my living room in my new house. The price is right, that is for sure. Any feedback from some current owners. Others I am looking at include the panny 50PU and visio. Likes, dislikes...?

drjonesn

01-11-07, 01:13 PM

Purchased my Zenith 50" plasma Jan 06. Blew up Oct 06 and was repaired. Now a few months later when there are dark scenes with bright objects on the left side of the screen the right half has little red sparkles all over the place. I purchased the extended warranty from american furn.( thank god!) Hope I can get a store credit and get rid of this piece of S***. Picture is good "when it works" though. :(

dmr3712

01-12-07, 02:39 PM

:(
Have been pleased with this set for almost a year..
Now I am seeing little red sparkles floating all over the screen??
They show up in all input modes..cable, HD cable box and DVD.
It is getting more obvious to see all the time.. has this been an issue with others?
sorry if this has been asked already but search did not get any results.
what is going on??
Thanks dmr

eddiwill

01-12-07, 06:37 PM

Yes, I have them. Not visible at normal viewing distances; I have to be right up on the set. The sparkles "dance" all over the set-- they are not "fixed." They are there both over component as well as HDMI and from sat. box as well as dvd player. Very visible on black screens.

In my case, after some time (maybe an hour or so?) they go away completely. I read somewhere (don't recall where) that someone thought it was because their plasma (like mine) is mounted on an outside wall and since it's colder now, you get the sparkles. I guess that could be the case-- kinda makes sense in my case, since they seem to go away after the set plays a while. Would love to know more thoughts on this...

dmr3712

01-12-07, 07:27 PM

contacted LG.. put me in touch with local TV repair shop.
went through the details of what i see.. he had me pause a DVD during playback to test if they went away.. they do NOT during pause.
He said probably needs a "board" replaced? (think he said board)
mine do not go away over time and it is not mounted for any cold factor to play into the puzzle..
any others have this issue?

drjonesn

01-15-07, 05:56 AM

90SPGred

01-15-07, 12:32 PM

My Z50PX2D failed Wednesday Jan. 11th. No popping or anything. My wife turned it on, and it didn't look right, so she turned it off. She told me it was broken. I turned it on, and the picture was washed out, weak, almost colorless. Audio was fine. After 15 minutes it went back to normal, great picture, and I turned it off. Later in evening I went to watch a show and it was washed out again. Never recovered.

Thursday Jan. 12th called Zenith 1-800. I was given a Trouble Call Tracking Number, and offered a local repair facility to call. I'm in rural Maine. Maurice's Electronics. He came out Thursday, looked at it, said he's never seen that before, and will call Zenith for guidance on Monday-Tuesday to see what to order. Wonder how long this will take!?!

newbeetle18t

01-17-07, 07:13 AM

So you called the Zenith 800# for repair service? Thanks for getting verbal confirmation from a rep that the warranties on these things have been extended to 2 years.

Let us know what happens when the tech comes out.

Well the tech spent over 2 hours working on the set. He eventually replaced all 3 main boards and the power supply. Each of the first 2 boards brought the screen from totally black to random red pixels and then to a white screen with random red lines and pixels. Replacement of the third board and power supply had no additonal improvement.

He then determined the plasma screen was also defective. He said most likely the screen failed and caused further damage to circuit boards. :confused:

He didn't sound too confident that a replacement screen would be available and stated we might need to get a new replacement TV. He specifically stated not a reconditioned unit. Not sure if that means a circuit city credit or a new TV sent from Zenith or LG?

Anyway he said he would contact us by next Monday to let us know if the screen would be avalable.

I was impressed at his persistence to try to repair the set. I was also happy I went with the LG repair and not a local shop. He had all the replacement parts on his truck except for the plasma screen. I would not think the local shop would have come with all the spare parts.

I took a bunch of photos of the inside of the set and various components. I can post at a later date if anyone would like to see them, let me know.

NCTS_tech

01-20-07, 07:49 AM

cpa4u

01-22-07, 12:58 AM

I am using the DVD break in disk to get 100 hours on my TV. Is there a menu function to find out how many hours have accumulated on the TV?

Thanks

90SPGred

01-22-07, 01:52 AM

Yes, there is. You need to press MENU on both the TV and the Remote at the same time. This will bring up a set of Service menus. Do that twice, and your hours should be available. I will suggest checking your hours and then leaving immediately. I think pressing MENU on the Remote will get you out of there. DO NOT change ANY settings in these menus. NO- there is no DEFAULT reset. Enjoy!

proteus69

01-22-07, 02:01 PM

I have these "red sparkles" as well. Other wise the TV works fine. Does anoyone know or have heard what the cuase is? Is it a faulty voltage (as desrcibed in another post above)? Board? I have a CC 4 year plan, I may call just for the heck of it! But if anyone else knows, that would be great.

:(
Have been pleased with this set for almost a year..
Now I am seeing little red sparkles floating all over the screen??
They show up in all input modes..cable, HD cable box and DVD.
It is getting more obvious to see all the time.. has this been an issue with others?
sorry if this has been asked already but search did not get any results.
what is going on??
Thanks dmr

dmr3712

01-22-07, 06:36 PM

American furniture repair tech called me to make an appointment and said the red sparkles are probably from a voltage that needs tweaked a bit. He sounded confident but we shall see. I will have to live with it until the end of this month when they come out.

tech came and tried to tweak the voltage..
they did improve but would not go away..
also added some blue sparkles after tweaking the red almost away :(
he will be back to replace some board..
dmr

cpa4u

01-22-07, 07:37 PM

Thanks just tried it and it worked after holding both menu buttons down for about 5 to 7 seconds.

Yes, there is. You need to press MENU on both the TV and the Remote at the same time. This will bring up a set of Service menus. Do that twice, and your hours should be available. I will suggest checking your hours and then leaving immediately. I think pressing MENU on the Remote will get you out of there. DO NOT change ANY settings in these menus. NO- there is no DEFAULT reset. Enjoy!

90SPGred

01-22-07, 08:43 PM

cpa4u
I tried pressing both menu buttons, but could not get anything other than the standard menu items. Anything else you might suggest that I could try?
No, that works. BUT - we are talking about a Zenith Z42PX2D or Z50PX2D, aren't we? If so, those are the directions. Probably works on lots of Zenith/LG plasmas.

newbeetle18t

01-23-07, 07:30 PM

He then determined the plasma screen was also defective. He said most likely the screen failed and caused further damage to circuit boards. :confused:

He didn't sound too confident that a replacement screen would be available and stated we might need to get a new replacement TV. He specifically stated not a reconditioned unit. Not sure if that means a circuit city credit or a new TV sent from Zenith or LG?

Anyway he said he would contact us by next Monday to let us know if the screen would be avalable.

Tech called today and said plasma screen was not available and that we needed to fax a copy of our receipt to customer service in Alabama to start a return authorization.

I spoke to someone in return authorization dept. They said that once the receipt is received it then goes for a upper management approval. Should take 3 to 5 business days and they would contact Circuit City to arrange for a replacement TV.

I'll post an update once I have further details

cpa4u

01-24-07, 10:40 PM

Has anyone used a Kill-o-watt meter on this TV to see how much power it pulls? I noticed that this unit has a menu option for "Low Power". I assume this decreases the amount of watts used. I am curious to know how much the unit uses under normal operation and under low power operation.

Thanks

NCTS_tech

01-29-07, 02:37 PM

My ZX50PX2D failed on Jan. 20. Made a loud crackling sound, then started fizzeling. :eek: Unit powers up, but no image at all on any inputs, or from the onboard tuners. Called tech support, tech scheduled for Jan 24.

Unit was purchased in Nov. 06, and was working great up until today. All of my components are protected with a Tripp-Lite Isobar HT10DBS.

Fingers crossed...I plan to document the repair process thoroughly. Any other advice at this point?

:(
Tech arrived today, removed back panel, and looked for obvious circuit board damage. He was looking for blown capacitors or IC's. Problem is, many components are also located on the back of the boards or are under heatsinks/shields. Finding none, he headed back to the shop to 'research' the issue with Zenith/LG. It will then take a few days to get the parts (assuming the diagnosis is correct), and several days to reschedule the tech to install them. The only 'guarantee' at this point is that I won't be enjoying the Superbowl on this TV...$#&!

Someone on the board posted that the warranty has been extended to two years parts + labor on this unit. Is that in writing anywhere?

Thanks,

Vince

bayouvette

01-29-07, 04:50 PM

After one year of owning this set and really loving it, i got 1 dead pixel around where the volume bar shows up. I do have a 3 year warranty, but have not tried to use it yet. I want to wait as long as possible, but believe it or not that one pixel really bothers me. I know 95% of the people don't even notice, but it really bothers me. I took exceptional care of this tv using proper burn in procedures and using low power when i could.

Anyone experienced any dead pixels on this set.

JohninTonawanda

01-29-07, 05:23 PM

:(

Someone on the board posted that the warranty has been extended to two years parts + labor on this unit. Is that in writing anywhere?

Thanks,

Vince
see post #947 above for details on accessing the text on the zenith website concerning the warranty.

Once they get your part, it shouldnt take too long to get it repaired. My repairman said it is a matter of just pluggin in the board and screwing it back together.

bayouvette

01-29-07, 10:10 PM

i must have jinxed myself coming post about my dead pixel... i now have the red sparkles also.

NCTS_tech

01-31-07, 12:28 PM

see post #947 above for details on accessing the text on the zenith website concerning the warranty.

Once they get your part, it shouldnt take too long to get it repaired. My repairman said it is a matter of just pluggin in the board and screwing it back together.

Website link was very helpful. Hopefully, the repair tech will get the part quickly and schedule a time to fix it. If not, I may look into that RMA/store credit policy mentioned in the thread on p 32...

Thanks again,

Vince

bayouvette

02-01-07, 08:38 AM

Did anyone get a definite answer on what was is the cause and fix for the red sparkling flakes?

Hoowahman

02-01-07, 09:16 AM

I also have red sparkles, I thought this was normal or was just my device xbox 360 that was making them. Mostly noticible in dark screens some people can't even notice them when I point them out. Would be nice to know if this is a real issue or not. We all spent a lot of money on these things.

shalace22

02-01-07, 11:31 PM

Hello,first post on forum, excelent info. I bought my Z in Sept. from Comp. and i was wondering if anybody has had problems with the sound. My Tv has a hella of a lisp! any thing w/ an S in it is bad? any help would be appreciated

Gonzoga

02-05-07, 01:17 PM

jaypb

02-05-07, 01:43 PM

My Z50PX2D died today with a POP-it was running, then went off-popped off, went to turn it back on, power light goes green, flashes 3 times and then goes red-back off, no picture no nothing. I bought my set in 12/2005 and after reading this thread went to Zenith's web site and caleld Zenith today-they told me no deal on 2 year warranty- 1 year warranrty on "that model"

If anyone has any other substantiation of the switch form 1-2 year warranty I would love to see it please. I bought my TV at CC. Up until today I had no errors............calling local service now.........hoping for the best, expecting the worst. :(

You can e-mail them through the form on their website, but this is the e-mail address that replied BACK to my e-mail that I sent through the LG site:

CustomerService@lge.com

Here was the way I posed the original warranty question I asked:

"Hi, I was wondering if you could answer a warranty question for me. I own a Zenith 50" Plasma (model# Z50PX2D) which I purchased in 2005. I was looking on your website here and noticed that the Plasma TV section shows that Plasma's made after 4/2004 carry a 2 year warranty from date of purchase. Is this true? I only ask because when I purchased the TV at Circuit City the salesman told me the TV only carried a 1 year warranty. Hopefully you can find out what the real warranty on this TV is. Thanks"

Here was the reply:

"Thank you for inquiring of Zenith Electronics. We appreciate your interest in this television. The warranty period for all Zenith televisions manufactured after April of 2004 have had their warranties extended from 1 year to 2 years. This is a change that has been made only within the last few months. For further information or troubleshooting, you may contact us at 800-243-0000 for LG Customer Service assistance. An agent will be glad to assist you. Thank you again for contacting LG Electronics. Neil E-mail Administrator Customer Interactive Center LGEAI"

Go to the Zenith site (http://www.zenithservice.com) and click on the "contact us" tab and send them an e-mail inquiring about the length of the warranty...and if you get the same response back about the warranty being a 2 year deal, I'd call them and say "here's the deal and how are we going to rectify this..."